School-Based Audiology Provider

Local Education Agencies (LEA) have the opportunity to seek reimbursement from Medicaid on eligible students for hearing services performed at school.  Hearing services in schools may be necessary as an Individualized Education Program (IEP) requirement or maybe the result of a failed hearing screen performed by the school nurse.  Billable services include:

• Audiology Screenings – Audiologists performed screenings for students who are difficult to test or cannot be screened by the school nurse or speech pathologist.
• Hearing Evaluations – Audiologists performed evaluations for students who are deaf/hard of hearing and/or for students who have failed a hearing screen performed by the school nurse or speech pathologist.
• Applicable IEP Services – Audiology as a related service for students with an IEP. 

The LEA may enroll as a School-Based Audiology Medicaid Provider, without an application fee, by submitting a completed Medicaid provider application to the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) School Health Services office, ATTN: MITS Specialist, ade.medicaidintheschools@ade.arkansas.gov.  The MITS staff will review and submit applications to DHS for processing. The Medicaid provider applications are revalidated every five years.

The LEA may secure the services of a licensed Audiologist in the State of Arkansas by a service agreement or full-time employment.  The Audiologist must also be enrolled as an individual provider for AR Medicaid.  In addition, the Educational Audiology/Speech Pathology Resources for Schools (EARS) program is an outreach service of the Audiology and Speech Pathology Department at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.  EARS offers a multitude of services to school districts and education cooperatives across the State of Arkansas.  See the information below for more details.

EARS Program Flyer
What is the EARS program?
EARS Permission Form

Audiology Referral

All hearing services require a referral (DMS-7783) from the Primary Care Physician (PCP), parental consent for the Audiologist to examine the student, and for the LEA to bill Medicaid.  The DMS-7783 does not have to be signed by the PCP before the service is performed by the audiologist but must maintain the completed referral form in the student’s health record.  Parental consent must be obtained first.  See the EARS Permission Form in Related Files as a good example. 

DMS-7783 School-Based Audiology Referral

MITS Advisors can provide training, guidance, and technical assistance for billing for School-Based Audiology.

For more information, please contact: