Self-Direction and FMS in Arkansas

All states: self-direction map

Arkansas self-direction at a glance

Last verified against state sources: 2026-10-13.

Which Medicaid programs in Arkansas offer self-direction?

Arkansas offers self-direction through one program, IndependentChoices. It covers self-directed personal care under the Medicaid state plan and, for people in the ARChoices in Homecare waiver, self-directed attendant care. The Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) lists IndependentChoices and ARChoices as its two self-direction programs. In both, the participant hires and manages the caregiver and controls a monthly cash allowance.

• IndependentChoices (self-directed state plan personal care): a 1915(j) state plan program that serves Medicaid-eligible adults 18 and older who are elderly or have disabilities and need personal assistance. It is run by Arkansas DHS. The participant has both employer authority and budget authority. Instead of agency personal care, the participant gets a monthly cash allowance, used mainly to pay the caregiver, with limited other goods and services allowed under a Cash Expenditure Plan.
• ARChoices in Homecare, self-directed attendant care: ARChoices is a 1915(c) waiver for older adults and adults with physical disabilities. A DHS nurse sets the attendant care hours under the person-centered service plan and the Individual Services Budget. If the participant chooses self-direction, the DHS Division of Aging, Adult, and Behavioral Health Services (DAABHS) is the point of entry, and the attendant care is delivered through IndependentChoices. The participant has both employer authority and budget authority, and the cash allowance stays within the ARChoices Individual Services Budget.

Employer authority means the participant recruits, hires, schedules and supervises the caregiver. Budget authority means the participant also manages a set amount of money. The IndependentChoices provider manual sets the allowance at a maximum hourly rate of 78.11 percent of the personal care rate, and the participant sets the caregiver's wage within that budget. State plan personal care is capped at 14.75 hours a week (64 hours a month) for adults 21 and older. The manual also requires a back-up caregiver and says enrollment is capped at a number approved in the state plan. It does not give the number.

We did not find a self-directed option in the Community and Employment Supports (CES) waiver for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, or in the PASSE managed care plans that deliver it. We could not read the approved waiver document, so this is not confirmed either way. Ask the DHS Division of Developmental Disabilities Services to be sure. The manual names the Division of Provider Services and Quality Assurance as the operator of IndependentChoices with support from DAABHS, while the DHS self-direction pages sit under DAABHS.

Who handles financial management services (FMS) in Arkansas?

One company handles financial management services for Arkansas self-direction: Public Partnerships, LLC (PPL), which DHS also shows as PPL First. DHS says it has contracted with PPL as the FMS vendor since October 1, 2023. Arkansas uses a fiscal/employer agent model, which means PPL runs payroll and taxes while the participant stays the legal employer of the caregiver. Because there is one statewide vendor, participants do not pick among FMS vendors.

A fiscal/employer agent is the organization that handles the paperwork side of being an employer. The IndependentChoices manual says the FMS entity must hold a dedicated federal employer identification number, act as a Household Employer Agent, issue W-2s and file payroll taxes. It also pays out the monthly cash allowance.

• Legal employer: the participant is the employer of record, a household employer. DHS states that the FMS vendor is not a provider and does not hold employer authority.
• Representatives: a participant can have a Representative direct the care. That can be a guardian, an appointed representative, an income payee, a family member or a friend. The Representative is not paid for the role and cannot be the participant's employee.
• Vendor by program: PPL is the FMS vendor for IndependentChoices and for ARChoices self-directed attendant care.
• Vendor history: PPL replaced PALCO, Inc. DHS's transition FAQ says PALCO's services ended September 30, 2023, and PPL's first payment was October 4, 2023.

Counseling is the help a participant gets to learn the employer role, build the Cash Expenditure Plan and keep up with program rules. Current DHS and PPL pages describe PPL Support Brokers doing this work. We did not find a statement on whether any separate counseling contractor is still in place. For questions about a specific case, DHS lists its contracted vendor on its financial management services page.

Who can be a paid caregiver under self-direction in Arkansas?

Participants can hire family members, friends and neighbors, but not people who are legally responsible for them. A spouse, a court-appointed legal guardian, a power of attorney or an income payee cannot be the paid caregiver. The participant's Representative cannot be the employee either. The same rules apply to IndependentChoices and to ARChoices self-directed attendant care, because both run through IndependentChoices.

• Who can be hired: family members other than those with legal responsibility for the participant may be personal assistants.
• Who cannot be paid: a spouse, a court-appointed legal guardian, a power of attorney, an income payee, and the unpaid Representative who directs the care.
• Worker requirements: caregivers must be 18 or older and pass central registry checks and state and national criminal background checks, repeated at least every five years. PPL also lists a drug screen unless one was done within five years.
• Hours: state plan personal care is capped at 14.75 hours a week (64 hours a month) for adults 21 and older. For ARChoices participants, a DHS nurse sets the attendant care hours.

Several points are not published on the pages we reviewed. We did not find overtime rules for self-directed caregivers or a current hourly wage range. We also did not open the approved ARChoices waiver itself, so the family rules here rest on the IndependentChoices manual and the DHS self-direction page. For a specific case, ask PPL Customer Service at 1-800-256-2913 or DAABHS at 501-686-9164.

Does EVV apply to self-directed workers in Arkansas?

Yes. Electronic visit verification (EVV) has applied to self-directed IndependentChoices and ARChoices caregivers since April 1, 2021. Caregivers clock in and out on PPL's Time4Care mobile app, or by calling an automated phone line (IVR) from a landline. Employers and caregivers must register with Time4Care to be paid for Medicaid-funded services.

• Whose system: self-directed caregivers use the FMS vendor's tool, PPL's Time4Care, not AuthentiCare, the state's EVV system. DHS describes the requirement on its self-direction EVV page.
• Whether pay depends on it: yes. Registration with Time4Care is required to be paid, and the state's Section I 145.300 rule applies the EVV claims requirement to self-direction plans.
• Home or community: Time4Care now asks the caregiver at clock-in whether the shift is in the home or in the community.

We did not find a published EVV exemption for live-in caregivers on the DHS self-direction EVV page or on PPL's Arkansas page. That is an absence in what we could read, not a confirmed rule. To check, call DAABHS at 501-686-9164. We also did not find a description of how Time4Care visit data reaches the state.

What is changing next for self-direction in Arkansas?

We found no upcoming change to self-direction in Arkansas as of the last check on October 13, 2026. DHS pages show no FMS vendor change, no new procurement and no program change. The DHS financial management services page says DAABHS is currently contracted with PPL First.

One recent change is already in effect. The revised Section I 145.000 EVV rule, which covers self-direction plans, is dated September 1, 2026. DHS posts rule changes on its proposed rules page.

PPL's contract term and any rebid date are not published on the pages we reviewed, so we cannot say when the FMS contract next comes up. FMS organizations and agencies that want to track it should watch DHS procurement notices and the self-direction pages.

Arkansas self-direction sources

• Arkansas DHS: Self-Direction/IndependentChoices
• Arkansas DHS: Financial Management Services
• Arkansas DHS: EVV for self-direction
• Arkansas DHS: Self-Direction/IndependentChoices FAQ
• Arkansas DHS: FMS vendor transition FAQ (2023)
• Arkansas Medicaid: IndependentChoices provider manual, Section II
• PPL: Arkansas IndependentChoices
• Arkansas DHS: Proposed rules

Related reading

• Self-Directed Medicaid Home Care Services in 2026
• Understanding Self-Direction and FMS
• Self-Direction Fiscal Intermediary: A Guide for Participant-Directed Care
• 5 Big Challenges in Self-Directed Care And How FMS Providers Can Solve Them
• Self-direction in every state (map)
• Arkansas EVV requirements

Other states with one statewide FMS vendor

Connecticut, District of Columbia, Indiana, Iowa, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming. See every state on the self-direction map.

Page history

• October 13, 2026: Page rewritten and checked against state sources.

This page is a reference, not legal advice. State rules change, so confirm details with the state before you act on them.

Ankota provides software for FMS organizations and agencies that support self-direction. If you would like to talk through your program, contact Ankota or read more about Ankota's self-direction and FMS software.