Medicaid Coverage Delayed Again for Doula Services in Arkansas

Red River Radio | By Jeffrey Ferrell,

Published July 14, 2026 at 12:49 PM CDT

A mother holds her newborn baby on the right, as her doula on the left, stands beside her hospital bed offering support.

The original deadline passed more than six months ago, blamed largely on the finalizing of Medicaid rules and regulations regarding coverage of doula services. The updated deadline is now August 1.

The Arkansas Department of Human Services missed another deadline to extend Medicaid coverage to Doula services across the state.
The requirement is directly related to a state law passed last year called the “Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Act.”
But, the actual deadline is spelled out in a separate piece of legislation in the final line of Act 965 of 2025, better known as the “Certified Community-Based Doula Certification Act.” It states:
“On or before December 31, 2025, the Department of Human Services shall promulgate rules relating to the reimbursement of doulas under the Arkansas Medicaid Program.”
Arkansas State Representative Aaron Pilkington, R-Clarksville, was the lead sponsor of the “Healthy Moms” legislation, known as HB1427/ Act 124.
As a health administrator himself with Arcare, Pilkington says their ultimate goal with that measure was to lower maternal and infant mortality rates across the state.
And they chose doulas as part of that therapeutic strategy, as Arkansas continues to rank among the highest in the country in both categories.

A doula is a trained, non-medical professional who provides continuous physical, emotional, and informational support to a person before, during, and after childbirth. Their main goal is to help families have a safe, empowering, and satisfying birthing.

As Little Rock Public Radio reports, in conjunction with its sister station KUAF’s Ozarks at Large, Pilkington says doulas work as a bridge for communication between doctors and patients, offering educational, logistical, physical, as well as emotional support. This support extends before during and after the birth process.
That’s why Pilkington says he understands all the frustration involved because of the repeated delays and missed deadlines in the implementation and reimbursement rates that Doulas will receive.
But, he says those complaints have ‘not’ been as prevalent lately. “I think a lot of them have understood the process and that's been explained by DHS, and they know they're working on it.”
Pilkington concluded, “So, while they may be frustrated, I think they understand that we're all pulling in the same direction. And for this way, it's not from lack of willingness to get it done. I think it's just been a lack of resources and time to get it done in the proper way."