Critics say the Arkansas Private Option program is more expensive than predicted, but hospitals say it's reducing the number of patients unable to pay their bills.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act encourages states to use federal money to make Medicaid available to all residents with incomes up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level.

Arkansas received federal permission to use the money to help low-income residents buy private health coverage through the public exchange system.

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Allison Bell

Allison Bell, a senior reporter at ThinkAdvisor and BenefitsPRO, previously was an associate editor at National Underwriter Life & Health. She has a bachelor's degree in economics from Washington University in St. Louis and a master's degree in journalism from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. She can be reached through X at @Think_Allison.