ARKANSAS TELEMEDICINE LAW
Arkansas still has a little ways to go to improve their telemedicine policy. Although the state did pass a telemedicine parity law in March 2015, Arkansas places arbitrary limits on patient location, eligible provider type, and also requires an in-person visit to establish a provider-patient relationship.
These barriers aren’t impossible to overcome. They just require dedicated action from physicians and health leaders who are willing to tell policymakers what they need!
Ready to find out more about Arkansas telemedicine policy? Check out our state guide below!
Parity Law
In April of 2015, Arkansas enacted a telemedicine parity law requiring coverage for telemedicine by Medicaid, private insurance, and state employee health plans. That’s great news for telemedicine advocates!
Type of Telemedicine Covered
Arkansas Medicaid reimburses for live video. The state Medicaid program defines telemedicine as “Interactive electronic consultations [that] are physician consultations, ‘face-to-face’ in real time, via two-way electronic data exchange.”
State employee health plans only cover store-and-forward for diabetic retinopathy screening.
Covered Health Services
Arkansas Medicaid reimburses for the following telemedicine services:
Consults
Fetal echography and echocardiography
Non-emergency visits in a physician’s office, a clinic or a hospital outpatient department
Inpatient hospital visits
Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) encounters
Arkansas also reimburses for Telepsychiatry services under the Rehabilitative Services for Persons with Mental Illness (RSPMI) program. Check your AR Medicaid manual for more details.
Online Prescriptions
In Arkansas, if there’s no existing provider-patient relationship, providers can’t write prescriptions based on an Internet questionnaire, an Internet consult, or a telephone consult.
Provider-Patient Relationship
Providers have to do an in-person exam with the patient to establish a physician-patient relationship before they can do a telemedicine visit.
Interstate Telemedicine Licensing
Arkansas does not yet have a Interstate licensing program that would allow out-of-state providers to treat Arkansas patients via telemedicine. Currently, any provider doing telemedicine with AR patients has to have an Arkansas medical license.
Restrictions on Locations
The most recent Arkansas Telemedicine Law says a patient has to be at a health provider’s office or other healthcare facility for the telemedicine visit. Patients can only do telemedicine visits from their home when they’re getting treatment for end-stage renal disease.
Reimbursement Rates
Live video telemedicine services are reimbursed at the same rate as services provided in-person.
Other Restrictions
Arkansas Medicaid only covers two telemedicine visits per patient, per year. It also requires a telepresenter to be present with the patient during the telemedicine visit.
Helpful Resources
Center for Connected Health Policy – Arkansas State Page
Arkansas Medicaid Telemedicine Handbook
The American Telemedicine Association State Policy Matrix
South Central Regional Telehealth Resource Center
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences – Angels