Senate Bill 1734 Summary

• Establishes the "Parents as Paid Caregivers" program under Arizona law, allowing parents to bill for attendant care and habilitation services for minor children with developmental disabilities, with restrictions on billing for services while children are at school, in inpatient care, or for ordinary household tasks.

• Implements a 40-hour weekly care services limit per child beginning June 30, 2025, requires a strengthened standardized assessment tool by October 1, 2025, and mandates quarterly reports to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee on program utilization, enrollment growth, and health outcomes.

• Restricts parents to employment by only a single agency and limits billing hours to 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., subject to individual plans of care; establishes a six-month state residency requirement for parent caregivers.

• Requires legislative approval via statute for any new Section 1115 waiver amendments that expand eligibility, add new covered services, or increase service utilization by more than 10 percent; mandates administration notification to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee of all waiver submissions.

• Appropriates $109.2 million from the prescription drug rebate fund, $403 million from developmental disabilities Medicaid expenditure authority, $13.1 million for cost effectiveness study, and $355,000 for a special audit of the program to be completed by August 1, 2026.