Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
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State of Arkansas 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1592 3
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By: Representatives J. Mayberry, Ladyman, Rye, Gramlich 5
By: Senators C. Penzo, D. Wallace, Hill, F. Love, G. Leding 6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO CREATE THE ARKANSAS ALZHEIMER'S AND 9
DEMENTIA PUBLIC HEALTH ACT; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 10
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Subtitle 13
TO CREATE THE ARKANSAS ALZHEIMER'S AND 14
DEMENTIA PUBLIC HEALTH ACT. 15
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 17
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SECTION 1. Arkansas Code Title 20, Chapter 15, is amended to add an 19
additional subchapter to read as follows: 20
Subchapter 25 — Arkansas Alzheimer’s and Dementia Public Health Act 21
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20-15-2501. Title. 23
This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Arkansas 24
Alzheimer’s and Dementia Public Health Act". 25
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20-15-2502. Legislative findings. 27
The General Assembly finds that: 28
(1) Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias are a growing 29
public health crisis, with significant social and economic impacts on 30
families and communities in Arkansas; 31
(2) Early detection, timely diagnosis, and coordinated care 32
improve outcomes and quality of life for individuals living with Alzheimer’s 33
disease and related dementias; 34
(3) Modifiable risk factors, such as physical inactivity, 35
hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and social isolation increase the risk of 36 HB1592
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cognitive decline, particularly in underserved communities; 1
(4) Dementia has strong links to chronic conditions such as 2
cardiovascular disease and diabetes, requiring integrated public health 3
strategies; 4
(5) Public health outreach, education for healthcare providers, 5
and healthcare access are essential to reducing the burden of dementia; and 6
(6) Improved data collection and analysis are necessary to 7
monitor progress, identify gaps, and inform public health policy and resource 8
allocation. 9
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20-15-2503. Interagency collaboration. 11
(a) The Department of Human Services and the Department of Health 12
shall collaborate to implement the State Alzheimer’s State Plan to address 13
dementia and improve cognitive health. 14
(b) The implementation of the plan shall include: 15
(1) Partnerships with healthcare providers and community -based 16
organizations; 17
(2) The expansion of public health campaigns that address brain 18
health, caregiver support, and the links between chronic disease and 19
dementia; 20
(3) Applications for federal funding to address Alzheimer’s and 21
dementia; and 22
(4) Other national cognitive health initiatives as applicable. 23
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20-15-2504. Public health outreach. 25
The Department of Human Services and the Department of Health shall 26
integrate cognitive health and dementia information and education into 27
existing public health programs, including without limitation: 28
(1) Education for healthcare providers, which shall include: 29
(A) The importance of early detection and timely diagnosis 30
of cognitive impairment; 31
(B) Information on the Medicare annual wellness visit for 32
individuals who are sixty -five (65) years of age and older; 33
(C) Awareness of the Medicare care planning billing code 34
for individuals with cognitive impairment; and 35
(D) Guidance on care planning, including treatment 36 HB1592
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options, advanced directives, and referrals to resources; and 1
(2) Public awareness campaigns, which shall include in 2
nonclinical terms: 3
(A) Cognitive health and dementia risk reduction; 4
(B) Early warning signs of Alzheimer's disease and other 5
dementias; 6
(C) The value of early detection and timely diagnosis; and 7
(D) The relationship between Alzheimer's disease, 8
dementia, and other chronic health conditions. 9
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20-15-2505. Data collection and reporting. 11
The Department of Human Services and the Department of Health shall: 12
(1) Enhance data collection and analysis related to Alzheimer’s 13
disease and related dementias to: 14
(A) Monitor prevalence and demographics across Arkansas; 15
and 16
(B) Integrate data from chronic disease programs to 17
identify trends; and 18
(2) Establish and update at least annually a publicly accessible 19
Alzheimer’s and Dementia Data Dashboard that: 20
(A) Provides data on the prevalence, demographics, and 21
geographic distribution of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias; 22
(B) Includes metrics on healthcare utilization and long -23
term care services; 24
(C) Highlights trends and outcomes related to public 25
health initiatives; and 26
(D) Reports on the utilization of the care planning code. 27
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20-15-2506. Funding and resources. 29
(a) The Department of Human Services and the Department of Health 30
shall: 31
(1) Seek federal grants, private funding, and other resources to 32
support implementation of this subchapter; and 33
(2) Partner with nonprofit organizations, private entities, and 34
research institutions to maximize available resources to support 35
implementation of this subchapter. 36 HB1592
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(b) The requirements of this subchapter are subject to the 1
availability of funds in each agency that may be used for data collection, 2
reporting, or other requirements of this subchapter. 3
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SECTION 2. DO NOT CODIFY. TEMPORARY LANGUAGE. Implementation dates. 5
The Department of Human Services and the Department of Health shall 6
begin implementing the education for healthcare providers and the public 7
awareness campaigns under § 20 -15-2504 no later than January 1, 2026. 8
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