ATLANTA – Today, Georgians for a Healthy Future (GHF) shared a briefing memo that contextualizes statements made during this morning’s Patients First Round Table Discussion hosted by the Governor’s office. Governor Kemp described Georgia’s new health care programs, specifically the Georgia Access health insurance marketplace and the Pathways to Coverage program under Medicaid.
While more low-income adults have been able to enroll in health insurance over the last several years, the reasons are more nuanced than the current state administration has allowed, and the additional context has important implications for Georgians’ access to care.
Originally published in May, GHF’s briefing memo details each of the Kemp administration’s health care programs (some are called “waivers”), their respective effects on access to health coverage in Georgia, and how Georgians are impacted by each. This memo provides essential, accurate, and sourced background information to reporters covering health care issues in Georgia.
Reporters will find understandable information and helpful illustrations that respond to the following questions:
- What is the Pathways to Coverage program? Who does it cover? Compared to Medicaid expansion (or closing Georgia’s coverage gap), how many Georgians are covered?
- What is reinsurance and how does that impact health insurance premiums in Georgia?
- What is the Georgia Access marketplace? Are uninsured and low-income Georgians able to enroll in marketplace coverage instead? What has driven recent enrollment increases?
- What is the context around the Governor’s remarks when referencing that 714,000 Georgians have become newly insured through his health insurance programs? How do federal policies impact this enrollment increase?
- Do these programs, when combined, replace the need to expand Medicaid in Georgia?