LITTLE ROCK (KFSM) – The Arkansas Department of Health announced Monday that its “In-Home Service” operations are no longer sustainable.
The decision will impact more than 13,000 patients, 1807 contractually-employed In-Home Service workers and an additional 503 employees of the division.
In a release from Dr. Nathaniel Smith, the director and state health officer, the agency can no longer support the program “due to financial constraints and competition from the private sector.”
It stated the ADH will transition the program to a private sector provider.
ADH Communications Director Dr. Marisha DiCarlo said no services will be discontinued, and the transition period will be a six month process.
“We are committed to making assisting employees and making the transition seamless for all involved,” she said.
DiCarlo said a large reason for the decision is a decline in both patients and employees of the program over the last few years.
A 28 percent in-home patient decline from FY2011 to FY2015 saw numbers dip from 18,649 to 13,399.
According to the In-Home Service webpage, the list of services that will be transitioned to a private care provider include home health care, personal care, hospice care, maternal/infant services and case management.
