On March 13, 2025, the Georgia State Senate’s Insurance and Labor committee met to vote on HB 197, HB 348, and HB 422 and hear HB 196.
Select the associated links to read each bill in full.
HB 196
This bill aims to lower the cost of prescription medications for state employees on the state health insurance plan by creating a reasonable reimbursement rate for pharmacies when a prescription is filled. An insurer must reimburse a pharmacy for a drug dispensed to a covered person for self-administration in the state health plan; the sum will be based on the National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC) cost and the dispensing fee under the Social Security Act. This will help benefit local and independent pharmacies.
The bill will return to the committee at a later date.
HB 197
This bill, discussed previously (see HERE), concerns the issue of Georgians not receiving healthcare because third parties sometimes deny treatment if they cannot have a peer-to-peer discussion with the practitioner. This bill seeks to mitigate this problem by requiring a callback telecommunication system or public website system through which the treating provider (or their designee) can choose to receive a scheduled communication at a later time if they are unavailable.
The bill passed committee.
HB 348
This bill comes at the request of the Department of Insurance. It changes the Georgia code to open the opportunity for companies to have more flexibility to structure their risk management plan to their maximum advantage.
The bill passed committee.
HB 422
This bill aims to change rules around high-deductible insurance plans. Currently, individuals who use this plan have to facilitate their high-deductible savings account, and those funds are not pre-tax. This bill will make Health Savings Accounts pre-tax.
The bill passed committee.
