Moving Forward: Vol. 18, Issue 2
Welcome to the 2013 Legislative Session! The first year of the General Assembly began Monday, January 14. The Governor delivered the State of the State Address January 17 at 11 a.m. before a Joint Session.
In the State of the State, Governor Deal emphasized the pillars of public safety, education, health care and economic development. The Governor's budget proposed a new structure to administer Medicaid benefits. We will be sharing details as we learn more about what this would entail. Earlier this week, the Governor explained that he will not be expanding Medicaid. To avoid the expected Medicaid budget shortfall of almost $700 million, the Governor proposed replacing the expiring Medicaid "bed tax" with a fee to be administered by the Department of Community Health. Legislation to do this was approved by the Senate on Thursday and now heads to the House.
We are still analyzing the budget, so stay tuned for more news. This issue presents the figures released in the budget. You can view the budget yourself at http://opb.georgia.gov
