Statewide News Releases

The Arkansas Center for Health Improvement is accepting nominations for the 2026 Dr. Tom Bruce Arkansas Health Impact Award. The annual award honors an individual or individuals who embody Dr. Tom Bruce’s lifetime of service, demonstrate courageous leadership, have sustained records as catalysts for improving the health of all Arkansans, and exemplify the core values of ACHI: trust, commitment, innovation, and initiative.

The Arkansas Center for Health Improvement (ACHI) announced Tuesday the promotions of Sandra McGrew to executive director, Jennifer Wessel to director of health policy, and Joshua Cook to director of external relations.

The Arkansas Center for Health Improvement has appointed Antonije Lazic, Ph.D., as director of research. In this role, Lazic will lead the health policy center’s efforts to develop evidence-based research that informs decision-makers and the broader research community on key health issues impacting Arkansas.

Craig Wilson, JD, MPA, has been chosen to lead the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement as president and CEO following a national search.

The ACHI Health Policy Board honored the late Rev. Hezekiah D. Stewart on Tuesday with the Dr. Tom Bruce Arkansas Health Impact Award. Stewart’s widow, Diane Stewart, accepted the award during the annual Friends of ACHI Appreciation Event at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock.

Dr. Joe Thompson, president emeritus of the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement, was honored recently with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the National Network of Public Health Institutes.

The Arkansas Center for Health Improvement is accepting nominations for the 2025 Dr. Tom Bruce Arkansas Health Impact Award.

As many Arkansans plan to hit the road to travel for Thanksgiving, the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement has launched an interactive dashboard that provides an in-depth look at Arkansas’ roadway fatality statistics. The dashboard provides data on the 4,089 roadway fatalities in the state between 2016 and 2022.

A multistate initiative has recognized nine regional entrepreneurs, scientists, agricultural leaders and other innovators as winners of the inaugural Delta Innovator Search.