With Crossover Day behind us, the pace at the Capitol is picking up. Lawmakers are moving quickly to debate and vote on bills that survived the deadline, while the budget process moves full speed ahead.
Take Action: Advocate for More GHVP Funding!
The Georgia Housing Voucher Program (GHVP) was created to help Georgia meet its legal obligations under the Olmstead Agreement, which requires the state to provide community-based housing for people with serious and persistent mental illness (SPMI) instead of institutionalizing them. GHVP is a permanent supportive housing program that helps these individuals secure stable housing, avoid homelessness, and access essential services. The program directly pays rent to landlords and provides ongoing support to keep residents housed and connected to care.
Despite its success, GHVP has been underfunded for years. The House added $1.7 million for GHVP in the FY26 budget, but at least $20 million more is needed to expand housing support and fulfill Georgia’s legal and moral obligations. We need your help to urge the Senate Appropriations Health and Human Resources Subcommittee and Appropriations Chair Blake Tillery to increase GHVP funding by $20 million.
This week, the House passed the 2026 state budget (HB 68) which will fund the Georgia government beginning July 1st, 2025 through June 30th, 2026. Below are some key health-related differences between the House version of the budget and the Governor’s FY26 budget recommendation.
Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities
Added funds for the following under Adult Developmental Disability Services
An additional 50 NOW/COMP waiver slots (on top of the 100 slots the Governor already recommended), providing new funding for 150 waivers in the FY26 budget (Gov’s Rec: $2.5M, House: $3.5M).
NOW & COMP waivers allow people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) to receive support and health services that help them live in their communities rather than hospitals or long-term care facilities. Even with these new slots, 7,300 Georgians with IDD are still on the waiting list for a waiver.
*The GHVP is a supportive housing program for chronically homeless Georgians who have a severe and persistent mental illness (SPMI). Stable housing is a cornerstone of effective mental health recovery, yet the GHVP currently serves only about a quarter of the individuals it is obligated to assist under federal agreements. Please see the GHVP action alert in this email for more information. *This is a GHF priority!
Department of Community Affairs
Housing Initiatives
Added $4M in one-time funds for the Georgia Housing Trust Fund for the Homeless (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $4M).
The Georgia Housing Trust Fund for the Homeless provides limited funds for housing and support services for Georgians experiencing or at risk of homelessness. The annual appropriation for the program is about $3M. Adding the one-time funds will allow Georgia to utilize federal housing funds for the program as well.
Department of Community Health
Departmental Administration
New funding for the Department to conduct a multi-year, comprehensive study of all Medicaid provider reimbursement rates (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $1M).
Health Care Access and Improvement
Eliminated one-time start-up funding for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: –$750k).
Provided one-time funds for the following items:
Grants for two FQHCs (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $500k).
Care and resource coordination for patients with Sickle Cell disease (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $562k).
Telecare and maternal health programs (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $500k).
Establishing a regional vascular center (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $407k).
Matching funds for behavioral and mental health services stabilization and augmentation (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $3.5M).
Expanding and sustaining labor and delivery services in rural Georgia (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $5M).
Added funds for the Georgia Rural Health Association (GRHA) to support access to rural health care (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $100k).
Rate increases across Georgia Medicaid for the following services:
Emergency medical services (EMS) transport to allow reimbursement to begin when the patient is picked up (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $6M).
Neonatologists and maternal-fetal medicine specialists (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $1.9M).
Speech therapy for children with physical or developmental disabilities (CIS speech therapy code 92507) (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $1.9M).
Rate increase for Aged, Blind, and Disabled (ABD) Medicaid only
Nursing home ventilators (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $263k).
Both ABD and Low-Income Medicaid
Funding and a directive for DCH to submit a State Plan Amendment (SPA) to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to allow for reimbursement of adult heart and lung transplants (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $750k).
State Health Benefit Plan
Provided funds to reimburse pharmacies based on a set rate and dispensing fee (as opposed to allowing PBMs to set their own rates) (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $1.2M).
Department of Human Services
Federal Eligibility Benefit Services
Increased funds for an additional $3000 salary increase for eligibility caseworkers (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $5.8M). This is a GHF priority!
Directs the Department to prepare a plan to address the backlog of eligibility determinations and submit it to the Office of Planning and Budget and the House and Senate Appropriations chairs by June 1st of this year. This is a GHF priority!
Department of Insurance
Reinsurance
Reduced state funds for reinsurance and Georgia Access in recognition of funding generated by the user fees insurers pay to use the Georgia Access platform (Gov’s Rec: –$50M, House: –$59M).
Department of Public Health
Adolescent and Adult Health Promotion
Increased funds for feminine hygiene products at community organizations serving low-income Georgians (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $50k).
Increased funds for an Alzheimer’s and related dementia registry (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $298k).
Emergency Preparedness/Trauma System Improvement
Added funds for the Office of Cardiac Care’s grants to hospitals in recognition of cardiac complications as the leading cause of maternal mortality (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $1.2M).
Infant and Child Essential Health Treatment Services
Added funds to support quality improvement at birthing facilities and additional funding to increase the number of birthing facilities with verified maternal and neonatal levels of care (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $700k).
Added funds for the retention and recruitment of Babies Can’t Wait* Service Coordinators and Special Instructors (Gov’s Rec: $0, House: $1.1M).
*Georgia’s “Babies Can’t Wait” (BCW) program is a statewide, interagency early intervention program for families with infants and toddlers (birth to age 3) who have developmental delays or disabilities.
Next Steps for the FY26 Budget
Last week, the 2026 budget began moving through the Senate appropriations process, with some subcommittee hearings last week and the bulk of them occurring this week. The Senate Appropriations subcommittees and full committee will review the House’s changes, the governor’s FY26 budget and make their own adjustments. Since there are only a few weeks remaining in the 2025 legislative session, the remaining steps in the appropriations process will move very quickly. GHF will keep you updated as the 2026 budget moves forward.
Stay tuned for more updates, and thank you for your advocacy!ans for Georgia’s health care system once it’s finalized. Stay tuned!
Legislation on Our Radar
HOUSE BILLS
HB 81: Interstate Compact for School Psychologists
Lead Sponsor: Rep. Bethany Ballard (147th)
Status: Passed by the Senate. Awaiting the Governor’s signature.
GHF Position: Support
What this bill does: HB 81 would allow Georgia to join the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists. This compact makes it easier for school psychologists to work in different states by simplifying the licensing process. It also helps address the shortage of these professionals in schools. The bill creates a commission to manage the compact. It also sets rules for sharing information, handling discipline issues (for school psychologists, not students), solving disputes, and how states can join or leave the compact. The goal is to give students better access to school psychologists while still allowing each state to set its own licensure requirements.
HB 89: Requires health care providers, health care facilities, and pharmacies to provide the Maternal Mortality Review Committee with psychiatric or other clinical records
Lead Sponsor: Rep. Cooper (45th)
Status: Passed by the Senate Health and Human Services Committee
GHF Position: Monitoring
What this bill does: HB 89 aims to improve how the state of Georgia collects information on maternal deaths and provides care for mothers and babies. It gives the Maternal Mortality Review Committee more access to patient records, including mental health and pharmacy records, to better understand why mothers pass away during pregnancy or childbirth. The bill also creates a Regional Perinatal Center Advisory Committee, which will help make sure hospitals and doctors have the right resources to care for high-risk pregnancies and births. Lastly, the bill simplifies the process for investigating the deaths of pregnant women, so medical examiners don’t always have to go through a regional perinatal center unless special circumstances require it.
Status: Passed out of the Senate Insurance and Labor Committee
GHF Position: Support
What this bill does: HB 197 strengthens peer-to-peer review requirements for health insurers and utilization review entities when they question whether a medical treatment is necessary. The bill ensures that treating health care providers have a fair chance to discuss their treatment decisions with an appropriately trained clinical peer before an insurance company or review entity makes an adverse determination (a decision that denies or limits coverage for treatment).
Status: Passed by the Senate Insurance and Labor Committee
GHF Position: Monitoring
What this bill does: HB 410 proposes changes to how Georgia’s Department of Insurance (DOI) operates. These changes include repealing several regulations, eliminating certain fees paid by insurers, and removing the requirement for insurance agency branch offices to obtain separate licenses. The bill’s author says HB 410 will streamline the DOI’s operations, reduce costs for insurers, and modernize regulations. However, several potential drawbacks could negatively impact consumers and public insurance industry oversight. These include less transparency in insurance company operations, less financial security, reduced oversight of insurance agencies operating multiple locations, and fewer financial resources for DOI to investigate and enforce consumer protections.
HB 506 – Medicaid Coverage for Tobacco Cessation Treatments
Lead Sponsor: Rep. Hilton (48th)
Status: Passed by the Senate Health and Human Services Committee
GHF Position: Support
What this bill does: HB 506 requires Georgia Medicaid to cover tobacco cessation treatments, including FDA-approved medications and counseling services. It prohibits limits on the number of quit attempts covered, prior authorization requirements, and cost-sharing (such as copayments or deductibles) for recipients seeking treatment. The bill also directs the Georgia Department of Community Health (DCH) to seek federal approval if necessary to implement these changes.
SENATE BILLS
SB 131 – Georgia Health Care Professionals Data System
Lead Sponsor: Sen. Hodges (3rd)
Status: Passed out of the House Regulated Industries Subcommittee for Occupational Licensing and awaits a vote by the full House Regulated Industries Committee.
GHF Position: Support
What this bill does: SB 131 creates the Georgia Health Care Professionals Data System, a publicly available, statewide database that compiles non-identifying information about licensed health care professionals in Georgia. The system will collect data such as age, gender, practice location, language proficiency, and license type to help track workforce demographics and geographic distribution. The aim of the bill is to improve data collection on Georgia’s health care workforce and help policymakers and others identify shortages of health care professionals, particularly in underserved areas.
SB 276 – Third-Party Payer Accountability for Medicaid Claims
Lead Sponsor: Sen. Echols (49th)
Status: Passed out of the House Insurance Committee
GHF Position: Monitoring
What this bill does: Senate Bill 276 strengthens accountability for third-party payers (such as private insurance companies and pharmacy benefit managers) when paying health care costs for Medicaid beneficiaries. The bill requires these payers to promptly respond to claims and inquiries and prohibits denials of payment based on prior authorization issues.
Share Your Advocacy Events with Us!
GHF wants to help spread the word about advocacy events happening at the Capitol!
If your organization is hosting an event during the legislative session, let us know! We’d love to include it in our weekly updates.
Submit your event details to Anthony Hill at ahill@healthyfuturega.org to have it featured in an upcoming legislative update.
Let’s work together to keep advocates engaged and make an impact at the Capitol!
GHF Has You Covered!
Stay up-to-date with the legislative session
GHF monitors legislative activity on a number of critical consumer health care topics. Along with our weekly legislative updates and timely analysis of bills, here are tools to help you stay in touch with health policy under the Gold Dome.
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