Arkansas Medicaid behavioral health rates
Arkansas Medicaid pays $77.27 for outpatient psychotherapy and diagnostic evaluation delivered by a licensed mental health clinician, effective June 13, 2025, the 15th highest of 22 states with comparable rates. Below: 3 more behavioral health rates compared with every state we track, the wages of the staff who deliver them, and recent rate changes.
- Outpatient psychotherapy and diagnostic evaluation
- $77.27
- Rank among states
- 15 of 22-4.8% vs median
- Mental health counselor median wage
- $24.80BLS May 2025
- Arkansas minimum wage
- $11.00
Arkansas behavioral health rates vs other states
Fee-for-service, like-for-like by provider level. Click a rate to open Arkansas's official fee schedule.
| Service | Provider level | Code | AR rate | Unit | Per hour | Rank | Median across states | Lowest | Highest | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mental health counseling | Licensed mental health clinician | Not published | $21.18 | $0.45 | $28.05 | 8 | ||||
| Outpatient psychotherapy and diagnostic evaluation | Licensed mental health clinician | 90846 | $77.27 | — | — | 15 of 22 | $81.17 | $20.33 | $302.03 | 22 |
| Mental health assessment (non-physician) | Physician or licensed psychologist | Not published | $117.85 | $9.66 | $687.46 | 24 | ||||
| Skills training and development | Physician or licensed psychologist | H2014 | $8.39 | 15 min | $33.56 | 15 of 23 | $47.80/hr | $10.00 | $120.60 | 23 |
| Therapeutic behavioral services | Physician or licensed psychologist | H2019 | $16.77 | 15 min | $67.08 | 13 of 20 | $78.64/hr | $16.80 | $825.88 | 20 |
| Mental health service plan development | Licensed mental health clinician | H0032 | $29.42 | — | — | 10 of 15 | $38.10 | $10.00 | $338.84 | 15 |
| Community-based wraparound services | Licensed mental health clinician | Not published | $98.52/hr | $6.28 | $710.72 | 9 | ||||
| Psychiatric residential treatment (daily) | All levels | Not published | $732.72/day | $283.19 | $1,244.07 | 12 | ||||
| Inpatient psychiatric stay (per day) | All levels | Not published | $877.34 | $367.42 | $1,435.69 | 7 | ||||
Outpatient psychotherapy and diagnostic evaluation: where Arkansas ranks
States whose published unit can't be converted are left out of the ranking.
| # | State | Rate | Unit | Per hour | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $302.03 | — | — | 2026-07-01 |
| 2 | New Mexico | $144.88 | — | — | 2025-01-01 |
| 3 | Nebraska | $115.68 | — | — | 2026-07-01 |
| 4 | Wisconsin | $95.02 | — | — | 2022-01-01 |
| 5 | Mississippi | $93.38 | — | — | 2026-07-01 |
| 6 | Minnesota | $87.61 | — | — | 2026-02-01 |
| 7 | Texas | $85.32 | — | — | 2026-03-01 |
| 8 | Maryland | $85.29 | — | — | 2025-07-01 |
| 9 | North Carolina | $83.68 | — | — | 2025-10-01 |
| 10 | Colorado | $82.99 | — | — | 2026-07-01 |
| 11 | Nevada | $81.42 | — | — | 2024-12-02 |
| 12 | Georgia | $80.92 | — | — | 2017-01-01 |
| 13 | Connecticut | $80.33 | — | — | 2026-01-01 |
| 14 | Alabama | $80.12 | — | — | 2025-12-01 |
| 15 | Arkansas | $77.27 | — | — | 2025-06-13 |
| 16 | Washington | $76.89 | — | — | 2026-07-01 |
| 17 | Kansas | $73.68 | — | — | 2024-08-01 |
| 18 | Michigan | $69.15 | — | — | 2025-01-01 |
| 19 | Massachusetts | $63.68 | — | — | 2026-10-01 |
| 20 | Iowa | $58.46 | — | — | 2018-09-01 |
| 21 | Pennsylvania | $44.57 | — | — | 2016-10-31 |
| 22 | Missouri | $20.33 | — | — | 2022-07-01 |
What it costs to deliver in Arkansas
Median hourly wages from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025).
| Role | AR median | US median | vs US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental health counselor | $24.80 | $28.53 | -13.1% |
| Mental health social worker | $28.17 | $28.98 | -2.8% |
| Clinical psychologist | $37.27 | $48.36 | -22.9% |
| Psychiatrist | $59.97 | $135.51 | -55.7% |
| Nurse practitioner | $60.41 | $63.61 | -5.0% |
| Psychiatric technician | $17.27 | $21.70 | -20.4% |
Recent Arkansas behavioral health rate changes
| Change | Status | Change | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| PASSE HCBS minimum fee schedule (CES waiver + 1915(i) BH) effective 1/1/2027, pending CMS approval | proposed | -11.7% | 2027-01-01 |
| Behavioral Health Services and Support (42 CFR 435.219 group), Family Centered Treatment as a PASSE service, ABHSCI repeal | proposed | — | 2027-01-01 |
| Milliman HCBS Payment Rate Report (Act 1023 of 2025) - modeled CES waiver and 1915(i) BH rates | proposed | — | — |
| CMS approved SDP AR_Fee_BHI_New_20220101-20221231 (January 1, 2022 - December 31, 2022) | approved_cms | — | 2022-01-01 |
The workspace adds every modifier, region and provider variant, full rate history, proposed changes, coverage and prior-authorization rules, managed-care plans and a unit-economics calculator. All of it is available through the API.
Rates are taken from Arkansas's official Medicaid publications, and each one links to its source. Confirm with the payer before billing. Managed-care plans may pay differently from fee-for-service.