How many people are on Arkansas’s CES waiver waitlist as of October 2026?

Arkansas Advocate reported Oct. 2, 2026, that families urged lawmakers to clear a waiting list of nearly 2,500 for the Community and Employment Support Medicaid waiver. The state’s September plan had cited more than 2,400 people, including 2,464 in earlier coverage.

How long does Arkansas’s $17 million supportive-living plan last?

At the Oct. 2 hearing, DHS’s Melissa Weatherton said the $17 million from state reserve funds would provide supportive living for people now on the waitlist through the end of the fiscal year on June 30, 2027. Sustaining services through calendar 2027 would take about $34 million, she said, and she did not identify that funding source.

When did Arkansas say PASSE plans would start supportive living for waitlisted families?

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’s September announcement, covered by Direct Support News and state releases, said Provider-Led Arkansas Shared Savings Entity (PASSE) managed-care plans would begin offering supportive living to waitlisted families no later than January 2027, at an estimated $17 million cost.

Arkansas: nearly 2,500 still wait as CES funding clock ticks

At an Oct. 2, 2026, hearing, families said Arkansas’s nearly 2,500-person CES waitlist needs faster help. DHS said $17 million in reserves covers supportive living only through June 30, 2027.

policy · arkansas · waitlist · hcbs · medicaid · ces-waiver

w_lemay, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Direct Support News desk · October 2, 2026 · Updated October 3, 2026 · 2 min read

Families pressed Arkansas lawmakers on Oct. 2, 2026, to move faster on a Community and Employment Support (Medicaid waiver) waitlist of nearly 2,500 people, saying January 2027 relief is not soon enough. The Arkansas Advocate and the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette covered the joint House and Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor committees hearing.

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and the Department of Human Services announced in September that Provider-Led Arkansas Shared Savings Entity (PASSE) plans would begin supportive living for waitlisted families by January, at about $17 million. That plan followed public pressure over the HCBS backlog for people with I/DD.

What DHS told the committees

Division of Developmental Disabilities Services Director Jennifer Brezée said Arkansas spent about $460.6 million on supportive living in 2025 and expects about $745.7 million in 2027, counting waitlist enrollees and a coming provider rate increase. Supportive living is the most-requested of four services PASSE does not currently offer waitlisted families, she said.

Melissa Weatherton, DHS director of specialty Medicaid services, told the Democrat-Gazette the $17 million comes from state reserve funds and covers people now on the list only through June 30, 2027. About $34 million would be needed to sustain the services through 2027, she said, without naming a source. Officials said the state share of added Medicaid cost is about 30%, with the federal government covering about 70%.

Brezée said about 150 people leave the waiver each year—creating the same number of openings—and that people at the top of the list have waited just over three years. Weatherton said the state gets 400 to 500 waiver applications a year and that DHS will ask the Legislative Council later this month to approve a customer-service vendor for a “one-stop shop” for beneficiaries.

Families and pay

Six relatives spoke during public comment, the Advocate reported. Some cut work hours or left jobs to provide care. Paid family caregivers through managed-care plans earn $11 an hour after a recent cut from $14, the Advocate reported. One father said his adult daughter has been on the waitlist since February 2004.

Why this matters for providers and DSPs

The September promise does not yet clear the CES slot cap; it adds supportive living on a short funding clock. Provider agency and PASSE teams should track when January service starts, what NOAs authorize, and how rates change as the 2027 budget season opens. Frontline managers and DSP supervisors will feel demand as families who waited years suddenly seek in-home hours—while DHS still warns the list refills after earlier clearances.

Common questions

How many people are on Arkansas’s CES waiver waitlist as of October 2026?: Arkansas Advocate reported Oct. 2, 2026, that families urged lawmakers to clear a waiting list of nearly 2,500 for the Community and Employment Support Medicaid waiver. The state’s September plan had cited more than 2,400 people, including 2,464 in earlier coverage.
How long does Arkansas’s $17 million supportive-living plan last?: At the Oct. 2 hearing, DHS’s Melissa Weatherton said the $17 million from state reserve funds would provide supportive living for people now on the waitlist through the end of the fiscal year on June 30, 2027. Sustaining services through calendar 2027 would take about $34 million, she said, and she did not identify that funding source.
When did Arkansas say PASSE plans would start supportive living for waitlisted families?: Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’s September announcement, covered by Direct Support News and state releases, said Provider-Led Arkansas Shared Savings Entity (PASSE) managed-care plans would begin offering supportive living to waitlisted families no later than January 2027, at an estimated $17 million cost.