Arkansas Center for Health Improvement
Mental health diagnoses among Arkansas youth have steadily increased in recent years. Our new interactive dashboard shows the percentages of adolescents ages 10 to 17 represented in data from the Arkansas Healthcare Transparency Initiative who had a recorded diagnosis of anxiety, depression, eating disorder, or suicidal ideation or attempt between 2016 and 2023.
publications
Mental health diagnoses among Arkansas youth have steadily increased in recent years. Our new interactive dashboard shows the percentages of adolescents ages 10 to 17 represented in data from the Arkansas Healthcare Transparency Initiative who had a recorded diagnosis of anxiety, depression, eating disorder, or suicidal ideation or attempt between 2016 and 2023.
The Arkansas Healthcare Transparency Initiative (HTI) has served for more than a decade as the state’s primary, unified source for health data. The HTI Biennial Report for 2024-2025 provides updates on enhancements to HTI data use, the entities that submit data, and developments that will shape the next phase of HTI work.
Telehealth is the practice of delivering or receiving healthcare services through telecommunications and information technology. This dashboard explores trends in telehealth utilization in Arkansas.
Blog Posts
The percentage of kindergarten students with vaccine exemptions reached an all-time high in Arkansas and across the nation in the 2025-26 school year, according to newly released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The August issue of Arkansas Money & Politics magazine features an interview with ACHI President and CEO Craig Wilson about a swiftly moving trend in Arkansas’s healthcare system: the closing of labor and delivery units.
A look at principles of pedestrian and bicycle safety to keep in mind as a new school year begins.
Maternal and infant mortality rates in Arkansas are among the highest in the nation, but a wide range of efforts are underway to change that. The Healthy Birthing Journey Podcast is a nine-part series in which we explore the data and issues behind maternal and infant health in Arkansas by speaking with the people working to improve outcomes for moms and babies across our state.
Each episode focuses on one of nine points on the birthing journey, from pre-pregnancy through delivery and into the postpartum period, where ACHI analysts and researchers have identified opportunities for Arkansas to make lasting improvements.
In the ninth and final episode of the Healthy Birthing Journey Podcast, we explore well-child visits and other efforts to improve infant health outcomes during the first year of life.
Podcast by ACHI
Data can be a powerful component in strategies to improve public health and healthcare outcomes. Research, quality improvement activities, and program development and evaluation all require reliable data infrastructure. That’s why, more than a decade ago, our state established the Arkansas Healthcare Transparency Initiative, which includes an all-payer claims database, or APCD. To learn more about the role of APCDs and similar efforts underway around the country, we are joined on this episode of the Wonks at Work podcast by Kevin McAvey, managing director of Manatt Health in New York and a recognized expert on state data assets.
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Health Policy Board Policy Positions and Statements
ACHI’s Health Policy Board consists of up to 25 voting members (and two ex-officio members) from across the state who bring diverse perspectives and interests on health. This independent, self-perpetuating board identifies and establishes strategic priorities, provides direction and guidance, and serves as a forum for the exchange of ideas. The Health Policy Board guides ACHI’s involvement in and position on specific policy matters, and it issues position statements that articulate the health needs of Arkansans.