SB1115 • 2026

AHCCCS; remote work; prohibition

SB1115 - AHCCCS; remote work; prohibition

Children Elections Healthcare Labor

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Carine Werner, Hildy Angius, Thomas "T.J." Shope, Selina Bliss, Matt Gress
Last action: 2026-03-04
Official status: House second read
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The specific calendar date of effectiveness is not included in the source text, only that it follows the general effective date rule.

SB1115: Ban on Remote Work for AHCCCS Employees

This law stops the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) from letting its staff work remotely.

What This Bill Does

Prohibits AHCCCS from allowing employees to work remotely.
Defines remote work as having a primary worksite that is not the agency's office and not reporting there regularly on a recurring basis.
Changes the heading of Title 41, Chapter 57 in state law to 'State Agencies Generally'.
Adds new rules specifically for AHCCCS under Article 2 of this chapter.

Who It Names or Affects

Employees of the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS).
The Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System agency itself.

Terms To Know

AHCCCS: Arizona's Medicaid agency that offers qualifying residents access to healthcare programs, including low-income adults and children.
Work remotely: When an employee's main work location is not the office and they are not expected to report there regularly on a recurring basis.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill becomes effective on the general effective date, but no specific calendar date is listed in this text.
Estimates for ongoing costs range from $2 million to $4.2 million annually depending on whether state-owned or private office space is used.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HOUSE - Health & Human Services - Strike Everything (Adopted)

Adopted

Plain English: This amendment creates a new law requiring the state to hire an outside company by October 2027 to handle administrative tasks for American Indian health program members, while ensuring tribes have a strong voice in choosing that company.

Starting October 1, 2027, the state must contract with a qualified organization to manage paperwork and support services for people enrolled in the American Indian Health Program.
Before hiring this new manager, officials must consult with tribal leaders and share their plan with legislative committees for review.
Each federally recognized tribe can send one non-voting observer to watch how proposals are evaluated and ask questions during meetings.
The state keeps full control over the program and cannot remove the option for members to receive care through a fee-for-service model.

The official text provided is cut off at the end, so details about restrictions on prior authorization for referrals are incomplete.
Specific rules regarding how much money will be spent or exactly which services the new contractor must provide beyond general categories are not fully detailed in this excerpt.

HOUSE - Health & Human Services - Strike Everything (Proposed)

Proposed

Plain English: This amendment requires the state to hire a private company starting in October 2027 to handle administrative tasks for American Indian health program members who are not using tribal health programs.

The administration must contract with a qualified organization by October 1, 2027, to manage services like claims payment and care coordination for eligible members.
Before hiring this contractor, the state must consult with tribes and allow nonvoting observers from each federally recognized tribe in Arizona to attend evaluation meetings.
The new contract cannot eliminate the option for American Indian and Alaska Native members to choose fee-for-service coverage instead of managed care.
The hired organization is prohibited from requiring prior authorization when a member moves from a tribal health program to a nontribal provider, unless there is evidence of fraud or immediate harm.

The official text provided ends abruptly in the middle of a sentence regarding exceptions for prior authorization.
Specific details about how much money will be spent on this contract are not included in the amendment text.

Bill History

2026-03-04 House
House second read
2026-03-03 House
House Rules: None
2026-03-03 House
House Health & Human Services: DPA/SE
2026-03-03 House
House first read
2026-02-25 House
Transmitted to House
2026-02-25 Senate
Senate third read passed
2026-02-25 Senate
Senate committee of the whole
2026-02-03 Senate
Senate minority caucus
2026-02-03 Senate
Senate majority caucus
2026-02-02 Senate
Senate consent calendar
2026-01-20 Senate
Senate second read
2026-01-15 Senate
Senate Rules: PFC
2026-01-15 Senate
Senate Health and Human Services: DP
2026-01-15 Senate
Senate first read

Official Summary Text

SB1115 - 572R - Senate Fact Sheet

Assigned to
HHS�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� FOR
COMMITTEE

ARIZONA STATE SENATE

Fifty-Seventh
Legislature, Second Regular Session

REVISED

FACT SHEET FOR
S.B. 1115

AHCCCS; remote
work; prohibition

Purpose

Prohibits the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) from
allowing employees to work remotely.

Background

AHCCCS serves as Arizona's Medicaid agency which offers qualifying
Arizona residents access to healthcare programs (
AHCCCS
). AHCCCS contracts with health
professionals to provide medically necessary health and medical services to
eligible members including

low-income adults, children, pregnant women and individuals with disabilities.
Statute outlines both financial and non-financial eligibility requirements for
a person to qualify as a member (
A.R.S.
� 36-2901
).

The AHCCCS baseline FY 2027 operating budget
includes 2,459.3 full-time equivalent employees (
JLBC
).

The Joint Legislative Budget Committee estimates that S.B. 1115 would have
ongoing costs of $2 million to $4.2 million annually for additional office
space to house returning AHCCCS employees, depending on whether the agency were
to utilize state-owned office space or private lease space (
JLBC
fiscal note
).

Provisions

Prohibits AHCCCS
from allowing employees to work remotely.

Defines

work remotely
to mean the employee's primary worksite is not the
agency's worksite and the employee is not expected to regularly report to the
agency's worksite on a regular and recurring basis.

Defines

agency
as AHCCCS

Makes
conforming changes.

Becomes
effective on the general effective date.

Revisions

�

Updates the fiscal impact statement.

Prepared by Senate Research

February 6, 2026

MM/hk

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

SB1115 - 572R - S Ver

Senate Engrossed

AHCCCS; remote work;
prohibition

State of Arizona

Senate

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

SENATE BILL 1115

AN
ACT

Amending title 41, chapter 57, Arizona
Revised Statutes, by adding article 2; relating to state agencies.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it
enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1.
Heading change

The chapter heading of title 41,
chapter 57, Arizona Revised Statutes, is changed from "MISCELLANEOUS"
to "STATE AGENCIES GENERALLY".

Sec. 2. Title 41, chapter 57, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended by adding article 2, to read:

ARTICLE
2. ARIZONA HEALTH CARE COST CONTAINMENT SYSTEM

START_STATUTE
41-5911.

Remote work; prohibition; definitions

A. The Arizona health care cost
containment system may not allow the agency's employees to work remotely.

B. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Agency" means the
Arizona health care cost containment system.

2. "Work remotely" means
the employee's primary worksite is not the agency's worksite and the employee
is not expected to regularly report to the agency's worksite on a regular and
recurring basis.
END_STATUTE