by T.A. DeFeo
A Georgia Senate committee will explore whether the state should amend its certificate of need requirement.
Leading up to this year’s session, Americans for Prosperity-Georgia launched a six-figure campaign to encourage lawmakers to repeal the CON requirement.
During this year’s legislative session, state Sen. Ben Watson, R-Savannah, introduced Senate Bill 162, a measure to repeal Georgia’s CON requirement. The Senate did not advance the measure but did pass SB 99 to scrap CONs for rural hospitals; it also signed off on Senate Resolution 279 to create the Senate Study Committee on Certificate of Need Reform.
“As a primary care physician for the past 35 years, I have seen firsthand the adverse effects CON can have on healthcare costs and access through reduced competition,” Watson said in a statement. “The Senate body has seen the growing need for CON reform and it is clear that there is much work to do to address how these laws are preventing rural Georgians from receiving care.
“Our goal is to help Georgia citizens get the healthcare they deserve, all while ensuring that there is healthy competition in the healthcare field,” Watson added. “Through the study committee, my colleagues and I will be able to get the full picture from experts and witnesses across the state.”
The General Assembly established Georgia’s CON program in 1979, though state officials started reviewing healthcare projects in 1975. Opinions abound on whether to repeal the CON requirement.
The Medical Association of Georgia has previously indicated that the CON requirement is “anti-competitive,” while the president of the Georgia Alliance of Community Hospitals said eliminating the CON requirement would “destabilize hospitals” in the state.
“The Georgia Senate made great strides by bringing the need for CON reform to the forefront during the 2023 session,” Tony West, deputy state director for AFP-GA. “Unfortunately, neither SB 99 or SB 162 made it to the Governor’s desk.
“By some estimates, Georgia requires a CON for 22 different services or equipment. Understandably, new hospitals are often at the forefront in discussions of CON reform, but other services like obstetrics, psychiatric services, rehabilitation, and substance abuse treatment shouldn’t be forgotten in these deliberations,” West added. “Georgians are equally harmed by CON restricting the supply of these services, and hopefully this Study Committee can build a consensus in support of a comprehensive and patient-centered approach to CON policy.”
State Sen. Greg Dolezal, R-Cumming, will chair the study committee, which will hold hearings across The Peach State. The committee, comprised of seven state senators and five non-elected representatives who have served in executive roles throughout the health system, will probe the pros and cons of the CON.
“Expanding access to healthcare and reviewing how the current certificate of need laws are hindering this process will be a focus of this study committee,” Lt. Governor Burt Jones, who announced the appointments, said in a news release. “The appointees are experts on this issue.”
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T.A. DeFeo is a contributor to The Center Square.
Photo “Greg Dolezal” by Senator Greg Dolezal. Background Photo “Hospital” by nrd.
