It isn’t often that we Arkansans can brag about leading the nation in health-related statistics.  Break out the party hats – a new report shows that Arkansas is fourth the nation in our Medicaid/CHIP participation rate for kids!  A new report from Urban Institute shows that 92.5% of children who are eligible for ARKids First or Medicaid are enrolled in coverage (2010 data).  This puts us behind only Washington DC, Massachusetts, and Vermont.

In short, Medicaid and ARKids First WORK.  They provide coverage to children when times are tough, ensuring low- and middle-income kids can visit the doctor when they are sick.  We still have work to do, though – there are almost 30,000 Arkansas children who are eligible for ARKids First but not enrolled in coverage.

Despite our high child participation rate, we are 39^th in participation rates for eligible PARENTS with only 56.5% of eligible parents enrolled in Medicaid.  This low rate is even more alarming given Arkansas’s extremely limited eligibility for parents who’ve lost a job: 13% of the federal poverty level, or about $3,000/year ($250/month) for a family of four.  Working parent eligibility is similarly limited at 17% of the poverty level, or $3,900/year for a family of four. On top of this, even the lowest-income childless adults in our children’s lives (aunts, uncles, adult siblings) are likely not eligible for Medicaid at all since Arkansas has very limited coverage for non-disabled, non-pregnant childless adults.**As the report states, “policies that increase coverage among eligible parents could also be effective at reducing the number of uninsured children.”

This highlights the need to continue outreach and enrollment efforts for adults, especially parents.  Enhanced outreach is one great by-product of the Exchange and a strengthened Medicaid (if the state chooses to extend coverage).  Outreach efforts will encourage those who are currently eligible to enroll through the “welcome mat” effect. We also know that there are 80,000 parents who are uninsured in Arkansas who could qualify for a strengthened Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act.

If you’d like more information about how our state can better ensure parents and other adults can access health care to be healthy and active parents, check out our Medicaid toolkit for a short video, county-level fact sheets, graphics, and more information. These resources will help you talk with your neighbors and elected officials about why Medicaid is so important to families – and how it can do even more for the children and families in your community.

**The ARHealthNetworks programs serves about 15,000 adults who work at least 30 hours per week, have been uninsured more than a year, do not have coverage through their employment, and earn less than 200% FPL.  Jobless adults, those who work part-time, or those who have unaffordable job-based coverage or recently lost coverage do not qualify