House Bill 1222

Chair's Name: Sharon Cooper

Committee: Health & Human Services

House Sponsor: Mickey Channell

This legislation makes changes to the “Health Share Volunteers in Medicine Act” and the “Georgia Volunteers in Health Care Specialties Act”. Definitions are added for “disciplinary action”, “restriction”, “sanction”, and “unrestricted”. Section 2 of the bill clarifies that a health care provider participating in the program must not be subject to sanctions, restrictions, or disciplinary actions by the licensing board or a federal health care program. The Department has the discretion to decide if any of these actions in the past are of such a nature as to raise patient safety concerns and warrant refusal to enter a contract with the provider. Section 3 also strikes some language regarding the issuing of special licenses.

This bill comes to the Floor under the Modified Structured Rule.

Chairman Cooper’s Opinion of the legislation:

This legislation makes necessary alterations to some of the definitions contained within the Georgia Volunteers in Health Care Specialties Act, as well as compels licensing boards to issue a special license for those who will work in these facilities. Physicians who are performing services in these free clinics, as well as other professionals who come back to give free care should not have a burden to get passed in order to practice again, this measure is intended to ease that burden.