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Updates for Clients

Updates for Clients

Medicaid Covers COVID-19 Vaccinations

English | Español | Kajin Majel 

Protect yourself and your loved ones: Get the COVID vaccine when it is offered to you!

  • Getting the vaccine will help keep you healthy, and it is the best option for returning to normal.
  • Arkansas Medicaid covers the cost of the vaccine for Medicaid clients. You will be asked for your Medicaid card, but you will not be required to pay anything for the vaccine.
  • Even if you don’t have insurance, you can still get the vaccine at no cost to you. Learn more about who is paying for vaccines.
  • All Arkansans aged 16 years and older are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.
  • Find a pharmacy or a vaccine clinic near you to schedule your vaccine.
  • To learn more about the vaccines, check out these frequently asked questions from the Arkansas Department of Health.
  • The Disability Information and Access Line (DIAL) is now available to help people with disabilities find vaccination locations in their communities, assist callers with making vaccination appointments, and connect callers to local services – such as accessible transportation – to overcome barriers to vaccination.

How can I apply for services?

Our county offices are open because we know that people need to apply or ask questions. We are working hard to keep our lobbies safe for people coming in and for our employees. However, we ask that if you are able, please apply or ask questions online or by phone instead of coming into your county office.

The fastest and safest way to apply for benefits is by going to Access.Arkansas.gov or by calling 1-855-372-1084.

If you want to email your application, first download a SNAP or Medicaid application below. Then you can either scan or take a picture of your completed application or any needed documents and email them to the office in your county.  

  • Click here to find the email address for your county.
  • In the subject line of your email, make sure to type “SENSITIVE.” This is to protect the confidential information in your application.
  • Please only send your application to one office in your county. If you email your application to more than one office, it will take longer to process your application.

These are the applications available for you to download:

SNAP & TEA Application

English | Spanish

Application for Arkansas Medicaid, ARKids First, or Arkansas Works
(For Single Adults with no dependents)

English | Spanish

Application for Arkansas Medicaid, ARKids First, or Arkansas Works
(For Families)

English | Spanish

Application for Medicare Savings for Qualified Beneficiaries
(Helps pay Medicare premiums and costs)

English | Spanish

Application for Long-term Services and Supports
(For Home- and Community-Based Services, Assisted Living Facilities, Nursing Facilities)

 English | Spanish

For your safety and the safety of our employees, we urge you to call us with questions, apply online, or email us your completed applications. However, if you choose to go to your county office, please note that we are limiting the number of people in our lobbies to less than 10, which means you will experience longer than normal wait times and may have to stand outside until the lobby clears out. That is for your safety. Please do not come to a county office if you are sick.

If you need to fill out and deliver a paper application, first download the application from the links above and complete it, and then you may put it in the dropbox set up at your county office for your safety and convenience.

How do I get replacement SNAP benefits if I lost food because of a severe weather power outage?

SNAP clients who have suffered food loss due to a household misfortune, including a power outage due to severe weather, can have some of their benefits replaced.  Clients must take the following steps for this process:

  1. Notify DHS within 10 days of the power outage using the Declaration of Loss Form. This 10-day time period is from the day your power is restored.
  2. Fill out the Declaration of Food Loss Form and return it to DHS. You can download the form here.
  3. Give DHS verification of the power outage- DHS can help you with power outage verification by contacting local power companies.

You can type in the information to fill out the form and email it to your local county office. You can find your local county office email here. Please do not send an email to more than one county office.

You can also print off the form, fill it out, and drop it off at your local county office’s drop box so that you don’t have to wait in the lobby.

What is DHS doing for the elderly and others getting services at home?

We have created a call center staffed with nurses and other specialists who are calling elderly clients in the ARChoices and PACE programs as well as those who get personal care at home twice a week to make sure they are getting the services they need and have meals. If clients have questions or concerns, they may also call 1-800-400-8016.

What is DHS doing to ensure services continue?

  • Emergency rule suspensions – As we work to ensure the essential services DHS provides, we may come across rules or regulations that we need to temporarily suspend to ensure we can meet the needs of our clients. You can find a list of suspended rules here.
  • SNAP Clients – we will expedite SNAP eligibility for individuals who have a loss of income due to the public health emergency. Also, the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act now allows us to issue supplemental benefits to current SNAP households. Learn more here.
  • SNAP Clients with a Work Requirement – Effective March 18, 2020, all SNAP clients with a work requirement will get a “good cause” exemption for March and April, which means if they don’t report their work activity it will not count against them.

Miscellaneous Resources: