Arkansas · home health aide (HHA)
How to become a home health aide in Arkansas: the routes that qualify you, who regulates home health agencies in Arkansas, pay, free training options, and all 36 state-approved CNA programs, since a CNA certification also qualifies you as a home health aide.
Your route
Home health agencies in Arkansas are licensed by the Arkansas Department of Health. Medicare and Medicaid agencies must use aides who completed one of the federally approved routes. These are the two most common.
Fastest route
CNA
Agency route
75 hrs
Why we list CNA programs: under federal rules, a state-approved CNA program plus good standing on the Arkansas nurse aide registry qualifies you as a home health aide. It’s the route that opens the most doors. See our Arkansas CNA guide.
The steps
The general path for most new aides.
Keep your hours up. Federal rules require at least 12 hours of in-service training a year, and if you go 24 months in a row without paid aide work, you must retrain.
Home health aide vs. CNA
The two jobs overlap, but the settings and pay differ.
| Home health aide | CNA | |
|---|---|---|
| Where you work | Clients’ homes, through home health and hospice agencies | Nursing homes and hospitals |
| Training | 75 hours federal minimum, or a CNA certification | State-approved CNA program |
| Official record | Your agency’s training and competency records | The Arkansas nurse aide registry |
| Median pay (AR) | $13.30 an hour* | $16.55 an hour |
*Federal pay data groups home health aides with personal care aides. About 19,840 of them work in Arkansas.
Help paying
Ways to cover the cost of training.
Many home health agencies train aides they hire, and nursing homes that hire you can’t charge you for CNA training under federal rules.
Directory
All 36 programs from our Arkansas CNA guide. Finishing one, passing the exam, and staying in good standing on the state registry also qualifies you as a home health aide for Medicare and Medicaid agencies.
| Program | City | County | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angels for Life Nursing Assistant Training Center | Little Rock | Pulaski | (501) 349-7827 |
| Arkansas College of Health Careers | Little Rock | Pulaski | (501) 319-7573 |
| Arkansas Employment Career Center | Little Rock | Pulaski | (501) 615-8922 |
| Arkansas Northeastern College | Blytheville | Mississippi | (870) 762-1020 |
| Arkansas State University Beebe: Searcy | Searcy | White | (501) 882-8860 |
| Arkansas State University Mountain Home | Mountain Home | Baxter | (870) 508-6102 |
| Arkansas State University Newport | Newport | Jackson | (870) 358-8619 |
| Arkansas Tech University: Ozark | Ozark | Franklin | (479) 968-0272 |
| Aspiring Medical Training Institute | Little Rock | Pulaski | (501) 240-6684 |
| Black River Technical College | Pocahontas | Randolph | (870) 248-4000 |
| East Arkansas Community College | Forrest City | St. Francis | (870) 633-4480 |
| Eden House Healthcare Academy | West Memphis | Crittenden | (501) 831-8664 |
| Gateway Allied Health | Hot Springs National Park | Garland | (501) 521-2022 |
| Harper Health Certifications & More | West Memphis | Crittenden | (870) 717-2283 |
| JWS Helping Hands | Conway | Faulkner | (501) 500-2427 |
| KEEMA House | Marianna | Lee | (901) 314-1657 |
| National Apprenticeship Training Foundation: CNA Apprenticeship (Northwest) | Northwest Arkansas | (870) 246-0320 | |
| National Apprenticeship Training Foundation: CNA Apprenticeship (Western) | Van Buren | Crawford | (870) 246-0320 |
| National Park College Adult Education | Hot Springs | Garland | (501) 760-4335 |
| North Arkansas College | Harrison | Boone | (870) 391-3181 |
| Northwest Technical Institute | Springdale | Washington | (479) 751-8824 |
| Nu Leif Logistics | Little Rock | Pulaski | (501) 904-1816 |
| Ozarka College | Melbourne | Izard | (870) 368-7371 |
| PAL CNA Training Academy | Little Rock | Pulaski | (501) 776-8422 |
| Petra Allied Health | Springdale | Washington | (800) 785-9876 |
| Pulaski County Special School District Adult Education | Jacksonville | Pulaski | (501) 596-9209 |
| ReelCare Academy & Wellness | Little Rock | Pulaski | (501) 916-2292 |
| Southern Arkansas University Tech | Camden | Ouachita | (870) 574-4514 |
| Southern Arkansas University Tech: Camden Adult Education | Camden | Ouachita | (870) 574-4514 |
| Southern Arkansas University Tech: Magnolia Adult Education | Magnolia | Columbia | (870) 574-4514 |
| University of Arkansas at Monticello: Crossett | Crossett | Ashley | (870) 460-1032 |
| University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville | Batesville | Independence | (870) 612-2000 |
| University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton | Morrilton | Conway | (800) 264-1094 |
| University of Arkansas Community College at Rich Mountain | Mena | Polk | (479) 394-7622 |
| University of Arkansas Hope-Texarkana | Hope | Hempstead | (870) 722-8274 |
| University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College Adult Education | North Little Rock | Pulaski | (501) 812-2779 |
Tip: ask each program whether it also offers a home health aide add-on. For details, costs, and exam steps, see our Arkansas CNA guide.
FAQ
Short answers to what people ask most.
Home health aides in Arkansas work for home health agencies licensed by the Arkansas Department of Health. Medicare and Medicaid agencies must hire aides who meet the federal training and competency rules. Ask the agency you're applying to which credential it requires.
The two most common routes are completing a 75-hour home health aide training and competency evaluation, or becoming a CNA. Federal rules count a CNA in good standing on the Arkansas nurse aide registry as a qualified home health aide.
The median pay for home health and personal care aides in Arkansas is $13.30 an hour, about $27,660 a year, based on the May 2025 federal wage survey. Arkansas CNAs earn a median $16.55 an hour.
Yes, for Medicare and Medicaid home health agencies, if the CNA completed a state-approved program and is listed in good standing on the state nurse aide registry.
Yes. Federal rules require at least 12 hours of in-service training every 12 months for aides at Medicare and Medicaid agencies.