Arkansas Code Title 20. Public Health and Welfare § 20-10-1702. Purpose and intent

(1) Promote the availability of appropriate services for elderly persons and adults with disabilities in the least restrictive and most homelike environment;

(2) Encourage the development of facilities that promote the dignity, individuality, privacy, and decision-making ability of those persons;

(3) Provide for the health, safety, and welfare of residents of facilities offering assisted living services in the state;

(4) Promote continued improvement of those facilities;

(5) Include residential care facilities in the assisted living program; and

(6) Encourage the development of innovative and affordable facilities particularly for persons with low to moderate incomes.

(1) Facilities offering assisted living services are a necessary part of the continuum of long-term care in the State of Arkansas;

(2) Facilities offering assisted living services should be operated and regulated as residential environments with supportive services and not as medical or nursing facilities;

(3) The services available in these facilities, either directly or through contract or agreement, are intended to help residents remain as independent as possible; and

(4) Residential care facilities have been providing many assisted living services for years and should be allowed to participate in the new assisted living program.