Support for Arkansas Week provided by the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, The Arkansas Times, and KU AR FM 89.

Welcome to Arkansas Week.

I'm Dawn Scott.

Thanks for being here.

Arkansas has cut about 140,000 people for Medicaid in the last two months since the end of a federal COVID-19 rule that halted dropping coverage during the health emergency in about a week.

We expect to learn the number dropped in June.

Federal officials are urging states not to rush Medicaid eligibility reviews, but a report says Arkansas is dropping people at a rate faster than any other state in the nation.

And Arkansas Department of Human Services says there are a lot of misperceptions.

So joining us now, Secretary Christy Putnam for the Department of Human Services and Deputy Secretary Janet Mann, who is the state Medicaid director.

Thank you both for being here with me.

Thanks for having us done.

Let's begin with this unwinding process as Arkansas has resumed the regular process of working to redetermine the eligibility of the beneficiaries.

Whose coverage had been extended during the pandemic explain what's happening.

So none of the the changes are surprising to us.

We expected there to be a large number of people who are no longer eligible and I think the keywords for us are resuming normal operations under normal eligibility rules.

These are this is a process that.

Was started when President Biden signed the omnibus bill and it went into effect and mandated the end of the public health emergency.

We are simply complying with the state law that was passed in 2021 that mandates Arkansas do it in a six month period and that shortened period of time that was mandated by state law in compliance with the.

The resumed federal normal operations by CMS is what's showing larger numbers of people during the months of starting in April through September for Arkansas.

Janet, answer this for me.

So those who did have coverage in the pandemic but don't now, what are the main reasons why they don't?

Why what?

Why wouldn't they qualify now the main reason will be they're over the income.

So we are redetermining all of the extended eligibles that we maintained during the three years of the public health emergency in the.

The highest reasons we are seeing for the closure is income and failure to return forms.

But we also think that in the in the mix of those numbers of failure to return forms, people know that they're not eligible anymore.

They've gone to work and we've had two minimum wage hike increases during the pandemic and we have record low unemployment to support that at 2.7% in in reported in May this year.

So we feel that.

People have started to rebound.

They've gone back to work and they're having employer covered health insurance.

How do you account for Arkansas's higher numbers compared to other states though?

Did we just have more people enrolled during the pandemic?

What do you, what do you?

I think it's a formula.

So since we are doing our unwinding in six months of our extended population, our numbers are going to appear high compared to any other state.

Most of the states have chosen 12 months.

A few other states, I'm not sure as to which ones think there's one or two that have chosen to unwind in six months or nine months.

So our numbers are going to be skewed high because we do are doing it in a shorter time frame.

But there's there's a lot of fabricated outrage over the fact that we are unwinding in that period of time for several reasons.

And a lot of it is coming, you know, from out of state media outlets and also special interest groups simply over the fact that we are unwinding and following the normal process, that is a return to normal operations in a shorter period of time.

The same number would result, disenrollments would result because we would find people.

No longer eligible for Medicaid if we did it over a longer period of time.

This is allowing us to return to normal operations and return resources that need to go to people who truly need Medicaid coverage to those individuals rather than continuing to cover ineligible individuals.

And I would like to add that during the pandemic, we did our normal business of.

Doing the redeterminations, we just did not notify them and pull them off of coverage.

So we had done a lot of work over the time period of the three years of the public health emergency.

And in addition to additional resources and additional work that we've done 15 months in preparation for this, we feel that we're prepared to do it in the six month time frame.

You had mentioned the failure of people to to return their renewal forms making almost half but also the failure to return specific requested information.

Is this a concern to you?

It it's not a concern if we we spent over 15 months updating addresses.

We worked with a partner here locally, we updated over 170,000 addresses and so we feel that we have done a lot of work towards.

Being able to mail the information out to the beneficiaries to get the information.

If they don't return it or if they return it then don't answer the additional follow up questions.

I have no way to to find that information without their input.

And that's not an unusual thing that happens with Medicaid eligibility and enrollment is you know sometimes we have, we have that happen as normal course of operations, we'd have 2020 thousand to 30,000 individuals on a regular basis.

Who would roll off of eligibility and many of whom would come back on by returning the information.

And we're still following those processes.

Well, Christy and Janet, you probably know already that June 8th, several people took part in a demonstration in front of the state capitol to share their frustrations while trying to reenroll.

So there were claims of, for example, trouble reaching a live person.

Also inaccuracies in the salaries of the people enrolled.

And even confusion about the jargon or the words used by the department in letters sent to Medicaid recipients that the average person may or may not understand.

What is your response to this?

The so?

The group that actually was on the Capitol steps on June 8th is a group that we've met with on a couple of occasions and and they've regularly expressed concerns about Medicaid in general.

We've worked with them to identify some changes in language that we have updated our notices with, I do want to point out.

That the, the Medicaid notices are largely regulated by CMS.

The states don't have a significant amount of flexibility in what language can go into it.

We have notification requirements that we have to follow by federal law and regulation.

But we, you know, we do make every effort possible to have a live person available to answer calls.

And to that end, you know I'd like Janet to cover some of the changes that we've recently rolled out with our call center approach, certainly so.

We have 6 areas within the state, and we're in the process of rolling out universal calling.

And so we have rolled it out to half of the state by by, by today.

And that means that when a phone call is made, it will be routed to the next person that can answer not just in that county office or in that region, but across the state.

We, we did this in addition to adding more caseworkers and some contracted staff to help with having a live person to answer those questions, answer those changes.

Take that information in and answer those phone calls and we do know that there will be a wait time potentially especially around the 1st of the month when notices come in.

They have the ability to do that by e-mail.

They also can visit the offices and continue to call and then we will work with all the beneficiaries to to work through that process back to the six months timeline that you mentioned.

You know that other states had given a longer period of time and in some instances the state lawmakers set that six month timeline and advocates have criticized it.

What do you, how do you feel about the timeline, so the timeline?

If we were taking a longer period of time, and I've mentioned this before, but if we were stretching this out over a longer period of time, that means that we are continuing to pay for benefits for individuals who are ineligible for Medicaid.

So what that does is it reduces our finite pool of resources to direct to those who are truly eligible and need the coverage.

They're taking a longer period of time.

You know it it, it may seem beneficial, but there are advantages to taking a longer period of time and disenrolling fewer each month.

But then there's a disadvantage to it also in what I've identified that there there's a longer period of time where we're paying additional money to cover individuals who are not eligible for Medicaid Services.

Janet, yeah, it's true.

I think taking the six months to do this and focusing on the extended population to right size the rolls so that we can deliver the care to the most vulnerable in the state and use our finite resources to the best of our abilities.

Well, another group involved that we spoke with was the Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families and no one from the group was able to join us for this program, but they did give us a written statement and I'm going to share that with you now.

More than 54,000 children in Arkansas have lost their health insurance in just two months due to the unnecessarily speedy Medicaid unwinding process that our legislature required DHS to follow.

That alarming number should be enough to make the state change course.

We are hopeful that Governor Sanders will direct Arkansas DHS to pause procedural terminations until the state can figure out why so many children specifically are losing coverage without a true determination of being ineligible based on income.

No one who is eligible for Medicaid should have to go without coverage.

So that's a separate situation involving the children.

Please address that.

So we agree that no one who is eligible should go without coverage, but you have to do the paperwork and complete the application to be eligible and meet the requirements of the income and through the course of the pandemic we have covered.

Almost 2/3 of the children in the state of Arkansas and that does remain a priority to cover the children that are eligible.

So we are working through our redetermination process to make sure all eligibles are covered, including children.

Would you like to add anything I would just you know I'm I'm reading the line on the screen that says DHS on Medicaid cuts and you know I I do have to clarify that this is not a cut to Medicaid.

This is a return to normal operations required by CMS.

So if we are not following the procedures to make sure that children are eligible as well and children can be income ineligible as as income ineligible as well.

And so we are seeing what we see in two months, we're seeing we would see over a longer period of time if we did.

Slow the process down, which we don't have the legal authority to do anything to slow it down.

Well, the number of our Kansans drop from Medicaid during the month of June will be released, of course, in the next couple of weeks.

Do you expect the rate of people losing coverage will be as high as the last two months?

It could potentially.

We have focused the first four months on our extended population and we have done with our expansion population also.

We don't have preliminary numbers.

It changes every day and we will see that that number begin beginning next Monday to see where we are and to see where the appeals are and then retro coverage also as applicable.

And final thoughts from both of you, Christy, with you first.

Sure.

You know, I, I think that, you know, we are in a phase of recovering in many ways from the public health emergency from COVID-19.

It changed our lives in many different ways.

One way was we expanded to meet the needs of all our Kansans to make sure people were covered and remained covered throughout the public health emergency.

And with the end of that, we are doing our due diligence to make sure that no one who is eligible for Medicaid goes without that.

Coverage because we truly want to make sure our most vulnerable citizens retain that coverage.

And I would just follow up and and just say that the team at DHS has worked very hard over the past 15 months in preparation for this.

Unwinding in this historic redetermination this the team does not take it lightly.

They they put a lot of due diligence into their workload from the caseworkers to the systems to all of the program staff that knocked on doors and helped deliver packets.

So I I don't think we are taking this lightly.

We are approaching it as as diligently as we can in the time frame that we've been given.

Communications team, you know, everybody who's really been all, all hands on deck with this.

And we've truly had great partners, including some of the ones, you know, who who've been referenced during this conversation who have helped us make sure we're getting the word out and helping people connect to the right resources to stay covered.

Arkansas Department of Human Services Secretary Christie Putnam, thank you so much, along with Deputy Secretary Janet Mann, also the state Medicaid director.

We do appreciate your time today.

Thank you.

Thank you very much for the opportunity.

Thank you and we'll be right back.

Welcome back preparing individuals on a career pathway as part of the mission of the state Office of Skills Development.

Cody Waits is the Director of the Division and joins me to talk about.

How they're advancing Arkansas's workforce through their apprenticeship program, A fascinating program.

It is.

And thanks for being here.

Yeah, thanks for having us.

We're glad to be here.

Well, let's first just talk about the Office of Skills Development, how you assist businesses and also prepare individuals for the workforce.

Give us an overview of what you're doing.

Yeah.

So at the Office of Skills Development, we're an agency within the Department of Commerce.

And our mission is to strategically invest in all levels of the Arkansas workforce so that earning potential increases and businesses have pipelines of talent.

When looking to expand or do operations here in Arkansas and we do that really through three you know main programs and a lot of other efforts that we have within the agency.

The first of those is we operate a workforce development grants program where we're granting out anywhere from you know 12 to $15 million a year direct to businesses, Chambers of Commerce, economic developers, two year, four year universities, K12, pretty much anybody who's in the system of educating and workforce.

And so we do that through that grants program.

We also operate as the state's office of all states, apprenticeship office where we oversee you know the roughly 100 plus programs, 8000 active apprentices with about two and a half million dollars in funding.

And then interestingly enough, we also work and coordinate with the Department of Education and oversee the 31 career and technical education centers around the state of Arkansas that serve roughly 9000 Arkansas students on an annual basis, most of which are located on the backs of a two year, four year university.

But also a handful that are operated by our high school programs around the state.

How long is this program been in existence?

You know, we hear so much lately about people saying I can't find good help.

I can't find good workers.

Did it, Was it born out of out of this or is this fairly recent?

Yeah.

So the agency was created in 2015, actually.

So in terms of state government, obviously very young.

But what was happening was it was a little bit disjointed.

We had multiple agencies who had.

Funding in dollars that were available to companies and businesses to do workforce training, but none of it was very coordinated.

There wasn't a lot of reporting that was provided on the back end.

And so there wasn't really a lot of outcomes that were associated with it.

And so in 2015 they brought those funding streams together and created the Office of Skills Development.

And so with that, you know, we've since taken kind of a a central role in investing in the Arkansas workforce and since 2015, you know, we're a small agency.

We have about 12 people who work within the office of Skills Development, but we've grown it from, you know if you look at 2016, seventeen we were doing probably around $4,000,000 in in grants and working with about 100 businesses a year.

Now we're working with north of 354 hundred businesses receiving probably 500 plus grants a year and awarding close to $18 million in funding on an annual basis to support workforce development.

That's incredible.

Let's talk specifically about the apprenticeship program.

What does it entail?

Yeah.

So apprenticeship is it's kind of the, the time tested gold standard of workforce training has been in place for hundreds of years.

But at the end of the day, right, it's a, it's a training program that combines classroom instruction with on the job training.

And so most of that is done through a program through the federal Department of Labor.

And so they regulate some standards around how we do that at the state level.

It's essentially a minimum of 144 hours of related classroom instruction.

Combined with 2000 hours of on the job training is what's considered a one year apprenticeship program.

You know apprenticeships can range from one year to four years and even up to five years in some cases heavy involved in the construction trades historically speaking because of the tide, the licensure.

So in Arkansas we license electricians and we license plumbers and as part of that we have apprenticeship programs as part of their standards in order to complete their their education and training towards licensure.

And so we have around probably 6000 of our apprentices that are active in the state, probably within the construction trades.

But in the last probably four years or so, you've seen that really expand and what we call nontraditional sectors, right, so information technology, manufacturing, healthcare and and the list goes on and on and on.

You know, and we're working out right now on some broadband activities, advanced energy and so things of that nature.

So you're really seeing apprenticeship expand here in Arkansas.

If you look back in that same kind of time frame of 2015, sixteen, we had about 3500 active apprentices and now we're out north of 8000, right.

So roughly 100 and 25127% growth in the terms of apprentices that are active here in the state of Arkansas, just in a short period of time.

So businesses have recognized that it's a valuable asset to their workforce development, recruitment and retention strategies and that's why we're seeing this broader adoption of apprenticeship across the state.

I mean my staff works with.

Companies on a daily basis, across sectors to implement apprenticeships.

Wow.

Well, your office is prepared videos on how these apprenticeships can benefit people and develop the workforce.

So let's take a look at what the program has to offer.

We were having trouble getting people trained.

Our leaders said, hey, give me somebody with three years experience and iOS and Android programming.

There were no people with three years.

A little company like us could recruit.

So we said we're gonna have to train them.

Jobs here, like in other companies, are tremendously specialized.

Our software is different, our culture is different.

And if you just have somebody come in and haphazardly train them, it's going to be a long road to get people up to speed.

A lot of people that I was going to school with, they'll just be getting out of school, you know, starting at the bottom, and I'm already working my way up to the top.

This is just a good opportunity for me.

You know, everyone, I think considers college, and that's good.

There's nothing wrong with college, but it's definitely not your only option.

Really.

Just so interesting to hear that because some kids don't go to college out of high school, and that's OK.

They can make wonderful living and benefit all of us, really, through your program.

Yeah, that's right.

I mean I think that's why we're seeing such an expansion in the activity both on the, you know, the individuals who are, you know, looking to get into the workforce training as well as companies who are looking at ways in which they attract talent.

You know, and people have realized that you know they're all alternatives to a fouryear degree.

You know, we pursued that and certainly that's there's a segment of of our population and society that is always going to go after the the associate's degree, the bachelor's degree, the master's and so forth and so on.

But it's the trades that really you know are key indicator and economic growth.

And so when we see increases in the types of apprenticeship opportunities that we have and gross and construction and manufacturing, that's what we're trying to find right now and that's part of our strategic initiatives this year.

And just to clarify, it's not just a summer apprenticeship, you mentioned it was 12 months.

Is that correct or is that am I?

Yeah.

No.

So really I mean if companies are looking at starting apprenticeships, you know First off they need to contact the Office of Skills Development, we can help maneuver and navigate that process with you.

But it's really not a it's not a summer thing.

There's certainly pre apprenticeships and youth apprenticeship, opportunities for students who are in high school or adult learners who are trying to get themselves on a path to a career that they can take advantage of.

But apprenticeship at it, and it's in its core, is really a structured process that takes place day in and day out through someone's career, right.

In order to be an apprentice day one you're hired and employed by a company.

And so that structure of an apprenticeship where you're going to class, maybe it's one or two days a week for two or three hours a night.

So you're getting the classroom instruction that's leading to that 144 hours of RTI, but then you're working full time throughout the day, whether it's days, nights, weekends, whatever the case may be to obtain that 2000 hours of on the job training that's mandated by the federal Department of Labor.

So you know, it's always a constant, it's not a summer thing, it's not a fall thing, it's not by a semester.

It's really always ongoing.

And again, apprenticeships can be one year in nature, right.

So it could be 144 hours and.

Of classroom training in 2000 hours of on the job training or can be as long as 8000 hours of on the job training and 576 classroom hours, which is typical of our construction and electrician programs.

Sure.

Is there a number of apprenticeships that exist through the state or you're just working to expand as greatly as you can?

Well, I mean you know if you look at you know that same kind of time frame over the last 8-9 years or so, we had about 83 different programs that were offered.

Now we're north of 100 plus, but really that growth has really come in terms of the number of apprentices.

Which is really more of a key indicator, number of apprentices that are active, number of companies who are involved in apprenticeship.

You know the the occupations, there's north of four 1400 occupations that are apprenticeable under the Department of Labor guidance.

And so you know that also again it ranges from healthcare, IT, manufacturing and obviously primarily construction where we share great relationships with employers and program sponsors across the state who qualifies?

Anyone can qualify for an apprenticeship so long as you're 16 years of age or older.

So really they the key there is in order to be an apprentice under the definitions both at the state level and the federal level, is that you're 16 years of age or older.

There's no requirements to have a GED or a high school diploma or anything like that.

So we serve in school youth, out of school youth, adults, dislocated workers.

And so from an individual perspective, you have to be 16 and you have to be employed and have a willingness to work.

And how does one go about getting connected with you?

I know we have a website and some numbers that we can share, but is there any, what's your suggestion?

Yeah, First off, I would say #1, we're doing tremendous education and outreach activities across the state.

A lot of that focused in the construction trades, but also in some of our other areas where we've partnered with Arkansas PBS to develop AY apprenticeship series of videos, both targeting individuals as well as employers.

But first thing I would say is go to our our website arkansasosd.com, search the apprenticeship tab we have, we have a a landing page and A and a map that is you know you can you can search on it and find what occupation you want to have, what region and state you're in, what programs are offered, their contact information for those programs and employers who are hiring for apprenticeship opportunities.

And so the first step would be to contact that website and and if you're interested in more detail, you can certainly follow up and give us a call that #5 O 16831152 and the website once again Arkansas OED, Arkansas OSD, OSD, got it, got it.

Yes.

Thank you so much.

So how I mean it goes without saying this is a win win for both both sides, helps businesses, helps the workforce.

You're doing a great thing.

Yeah, we are.

I mean at the end of the day, I mean that's again, our goal is to strategically invest in all levels of the Arkansas workforce, whether that's education, incumbent workers, dislocated workers, unemployed individuals.

You know, there's statistics around apprenticeship that shows that companies who invest in apprenticeship, every dollar they invest, they get $1.40 return on that investment.

So that's a key, you know, indicator that we always, you know, want to highlight, but then at the end of the day, we also have state funding that we allocate towards.

Offsetting the costs of companies to expand into apprenticeship and again that's cross sector, that's whether that's healthcare, manufacturing, construction, IT so forth and so on.

So companies can get into apprenticeship at no cost upfront.

You know to sustain that obviously there's some cost that they will have to incur, but we try to move all the barriers to to starting apprenticeships and again that's why we've seen the increases.

Both in the number of programs, the number of apprentices and number of employers across the state who are taking advantage of it.

All right.

Apprenticeships, what a great, great opportunity for both business and workers.

Cody Waits, the director of Arkansas Office of Skills Development, thanks again for being with us.

Yeah, thank you.

And that does it for Arkansas week.

Thanks for being here.

I'm Dawn.

Scott.

See you next time.

Support for Arkansas Week provided by the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, The Arkansas Times and KUARFM 89.