Arkansas registered 99 behavioral health providers in the latest CMS NPI registry weekly update, accounting for 1% of the national total. This modest share suggests Arkansas is a smaller, but actively developing, market for behavioral health services, with a steady influx of new professionals.
ABA Workforce Dynamics
Within the applied behavior analysis (ABA) sector, the data shows 4 BCBA credentials and 30 RBT credentials. It is important to note that these credential counts are not mutually exclusive, as 2 individuals hold both BCBA and RBT credentials, indicating career progression from direct service provider to supervisor. This results in a ratio of 7.5 RBTs for every BCBA, which is a high ratio that points to a significant need for more BCBA supervisors to ensure adequate oversight and expand service capacity for ABA therapy across the state.
Provider Demographics
Of the 88 individual providers registered, 75 (85%) are female and 13 (15%) are male. This gender distribution aligns with national trends in the behavioral health workforce. The data did not identify any specific organizations appearing multiple times in this week's new registrations, suggesting a diverse landscape of smaller practices or individual practitioners rather than dominant multi-state chains.
This current snapshot of Arkansas's behavioral health workforce indicates a strong base of direct service providers, particularly RBTs, but highlights the ongoing challenge of building sufficient supervisory capacity to meet the growing demand for ABA services in the state.
