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Arkansas Advocate: Facing financial headwinds, rural Arkansas hospitals turn to partnerships

By TESS VRBIN | Arkansas Advocate Arkansas’ largest state-funded healthcare institution recently partnered with two rural hospitals in an effort to improve care, a move that health leaders say could provide a model for providers facing financial strain. It’s one way hospitals statewide and nationwide are adapting to an increasingly difficult healthcare landscape that has forced hospitals to cut services or close entirely. There were 40 hospital mergers and acquisitions nationwide in the first half of 2026, one of the highest numbers in the same time span so far this decade. The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences will co-manage…

Arkansas Tax Free Weekend returns Aug. 1-2 for school shoppers

A school girl shops a stationery rack at a retail store. This coming Saturday and Sunday Arkansans will be treated to a Tax Free Weekend for many supplies ahead of the beginning of the 2026-2027 school year. | Shutterstock image The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) reminds Arkansans Tax Free Weekend will begin at 12:01 a.m. August 1 and continue through 11:59 p.m. August 2. Shoppers will not pay the state’s 6.5% sales tax on all qualified items. Local sales tax will also not apply. In addition to on-site purchases, online purchases qualify if the item is shipped to Arkansas.…

Felony Friday: Flock cameras used to solve home burglary

This is a roundup of felony charges filed July 10-24, 2026, by the Clark County Prosecutor’s Office. Some defendants may also have misdemeanor charges against them, but most are not included here. The following names and charges, which are contained within public documents, are gathered from online court records available through ARCourts. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Here’s a rundown of felony cases filed in the past two weeks: Detectives use Flock camera to arrest burglary suspect Artificial Intelligence that logs vehicle details and tracks movement was used to aid Clark County detectives in solving a case of…

Update: FAA report details crash landing at Arkadelphia airport

A single-engine aircraft that experienced a crash landing Thursday at Arkadelphia’s Dexter Florence Memorial Field showed indication of an unsafe gear. According to an incident report filed by the Federal Aviation Administration, the 1985 Cessna P210R “experienced a gear up landing following an unsafe gear indication.” The report notes that the pilot unsuccessfully attempted manual extension. The gear collapsed and the aircraft veered into the grass. Only the pilot was aboard the aircraft, a fixed-wing six-seater registered to Beta Aviation LLC. A FlightAware flight tracker indicates that the plane tracked off its northeasterly course above Sticky Road near Gurdon, then…