Arkansas Pacific Islander Community Leaders Advance New Law That Expanded Health Care Eligibility for More than 12,000 Arkansans
Officials update Arkansas’ Medicaid rules for vulnerable community members.
Springdale, Arkansas - On February 23rd the Arkansas Legislative Council approved a rule change that affirms health coverage for Arkansas’ significant Marshallese population, reversing a policy that stripped Medicaid eligibility inadvertently nearly three decades ago. The update to the state’s Medicaid policy manual clarifies that people 18 and over under the Compacts of Free Association (COFA) will be eligible for Medicaid if they meet the other requirements. Under the COFA agreement, citizens of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Republic of Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia (COFA citizens) are able to freely travel to, live and work in the United States in exchange for exclusive military use of the islands by the U.S. The final rule change provides clear guidance to Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) enrollment workers, hospital and community organizations serving COFA communities across the state.
The rule change came from legislative language incorporated into the federal Omnibus Covid Relief Bill restoring Medicaid eligibility to COFA citizens. Pacific Islander leaders conducted a national campaign for 25-years to fix an egregious legislative drafting error that left COFA communities without health access overnight. Federal eligibility was restored on December 27, 2020, and community leaders quickly pivoted to state-level advocacy to ensure swift implementation. COFA communities in Arkansas and across the country have already borne a disproportionate toll of COVID deaths.
“When we won Medicaid restoration in December, it was hard to pause and celebrate. That night I kept thinking ‘We can’t let any more of our people die. We have to work on implementation.’ The day after the bill was signed, we started calling and emailing our contacts at the Arkansas Department of Health Services (DHS) to meet about enrolling our community members. We were able to work with DHS and in partnership with community leaders, advocates including the Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, government agencies, and legislators on the shared mission to get COFA communities health care coverage. We all understand the urgency,” shared Melisa Laelan, Executive Director of the Arkansas Coalition for Marshallese (ACOM).
While the advocates, DHS and other partners worked to update language in the Medicaid policy manual, ACOM assisted COFA citizens in obtaining Medicaid coverage through applying via healthcare.gov. Since the law became effective on December 27, 2020, newly eligible COFA citizens may back date their coverage if they meet the other Medicaid requirements.
“Though it has been a long fight for our Marshallese community, COFA advocates and allies, our fight continues. The change in law opened the door to critical health coverage, now we’ve got to make sure every last one of our community members gets access. We’re going to work with our partners to push for full implementation of the new policy through educating DHS staff, and medical providers; investing in-language education and enrollment materials and resources; and resourcing COFA-led and serving community organizations who have deep trust within communities to enroll newly eligible people,” shared Dr. Sheldon Riklon, Marshallese Family Physician, Northwest Arkansas.
About Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese (ACOM)
Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese (ACOM) is a non-profit organization 501c(3) founded in 2011 focusing on initiatives to improve the quality of life for the more than 12,000 Marshallese community members living in Arkansas. We serve Marshallese and strive to support and build capacity with other islander communities. ACOM engages the Marshallese community through a culturally specific approach applying education, leadership, policy and holistic services.
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For more information about ACOM, visit www.arkansasmarshallese.org.