Wednesday, February 5, 2025
2/5/2025
The Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) will implement Transforming Maternal Health (TMaH) across the state during a ten-year project period. Arkansas has poor maternal and infant health outcomes and high maternal mortality. In recognition of these maternal and infant health disparities, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a March 2024 Executive Order “to support moms, protect babies, and improve maternal health.” A multi-stakeholder taskforce collaborated to develop an actionable Statewide Maternal Health Plan that directly aligns with the TMaH model. Project Goals. The overarching goal of Arkansas’ implementation of the TMaH Model is to improve maternal and infant health through evidence-informed interventions, sustained by a value-based payment model. This includes the following project outcomes: • Expanding and providing sustainable reimbursement for interprofessional care workforce, including midwives, doulas, and perinatal Community Health Workers • Investing in data infrastructure that supports maternal healthcare and providers to increase the speed, accuracy, and completeness of data-sharing on maternal health measures • Eliminating gaps in care through screening, referrals and follow-ups, with a focus on prevention and better coordination of care among providers and community-based organizations (CBOs), and by reducing transportation barriers for patients • Expanding whole-person care delivery with increased use of home monitoring, home visiting, mobile clinics, group prenatal care, and telehealth • Reviewing Medicaid reimbursement rates and payment structures for obstetrical care and implementing new payment structures to improve outcomes, including providing incentives to providers whose patients demonstrate healthier outcomes • Expanding the use of evidence-based standards of care, including patient-safety bundles • Increasing access to proven models of group prenatal care Total Budget. The total budget for the ten-year project period is $17 million. How Funds Will be Used. Funds will be used for activities required or encouraged by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for this effort. These include the following: • Analyzing data to better target maternal healthcare services • Educating providers on the benefits of leveraging doulas, CHWs and midwives • Investing in technology to better serve pregnant women • Building data infrastructure to better collect and share pertinent healthcare data to improve maternal health outcomes • Redesigning Medicaid reimbursement rates and payment structures to incentivize providers to improve maternal health outcomes through value-based care • Improving connections to and between healthcare providers and CBOs (nonprofits and faith-based organizations) who help meet basic needs for impoverished Arkansas women
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).