By Rep. Gabriel Sanchez and Dr. Toby Terwilliger
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, April 24, 2026
This legislative session, one of the most consequential bills in a generation was dropped in the Georgia House, the Georgia Medicare for All bill (HB 1480). The legislation would lower costs for working families, protect bodily autonomy, reduce administrative waste, and stabilize dozens of rural hospitals that are now on the brink. Most importantly, it would remove the major profit motives to refocus healthcare on what matters most: the patients.
In recent months, Georgia politicians on the right, including Marjorie Taylor Greene and Matt Hatchett, have garnered attention for their public criticism of the health insurance industry. Their comments reflect a broader and growing frustration, shared by conservatives and progressives alike, with a system that prioritizes corporate earnings over patient care.Ā
But Georgians have known the truth for much longer. Families are skipping doctor’s visits because of high deductibles. Seniors are splitting pills to make their medications last longer. Small businesses that want to provide coverage simply canāt afford the premiums. And rural hospitals are closing down, leaving people to drive hours for medical needs. At long last, H.B. 1480 gives Georgians the solution they deserve.
Recent polling shows thatĀ nearly two-thirds of Americans support Medicare-for-All, including nearly one-half of Republican voters. There is good reason for it.Ā While the United States already spends nearlyĀ twice as much per capitaĀ on healthcare as other wealthy nations, it lags behind them on basic outcomes like life expectancy and maternal mortality. This isnāt because Americans receive too much care; itās because our system wastes enormous sums on administrative complexity and profit extraction.
Administrative costs aloneĀ approach $1 trillion annually, money diverted away from patient care into billing systems, prior authorization, executive compensation, and shareholder returns. In 2024, the CEOs of the six largest health insurers collectively earned nearly $160 million, while patients delayed care, families fell into medical debt, and people died because of lack of care.
And now, Congressional Republicansā so-called āOne Big Beautiful Billā (H.R. 1) proposed more thanĀ $1 trillion in Medicaid cutsĀ over the next decade, the largest rollback of the program in U.S. history. Here in Georgia, the consequences would be devastating. Medicaid alone coversĀ more than half of all births in our state. According toĀ KFF Health News, more than 310,000 Georgians could lose health coverage by 2034 as a result of changes to Medicaid and Affordable Care Act programs under H.R. 1. That number could climb as high as 750,000 after Congress allowed ACA premium tax credits to expire at the start of this year. For a state that already ranksĀ 17th worst in the nation for health outcomes, these losses would deepen existing inequities and strain an already fragile health care system.
Incremental fixes may temporarily soften the sharpest edges of a broken system, but they cannot fix its core failure. As long as profit-driven insurance companies sit between patients and care, costs will rise, providers will burn out, and coverage will remain unstable. Medicare for All addresses this problem at its root by removing the middleman and putting patients, providers, and communities first.
That’s why we introduced theĀ Georgia Medicare for All billĀ – a bold and necessary step to ensure every Georgian can access the care they need, no matter what. This legislation establishes a Georgia Medicare for All Board to administer the program and secure sustainable funding, ensuring that decisions about care are driven by public health needs rather than corporate profits.Ā
The bill guarantees comprehensive coverage, including everything currently covered under Medicare and state programs, while expanding access to community-based care, dental and vision services, and full reproductive and maternal health care through the Reproductive Freedom Act. Health care should be a guarantee for every American, and this legislation makes that promise real.
At a time when wages have stagnated,Ā and households are squeezed by an affordability crisis, it is indefensible to allow an industry that consumes nearly one-fifth of our GDP to profit while Georgians go without care.
Georgia has a choice. We can allow federal cuts and corporate interests to hollow out our health care system, or we can lead. As the gubernatorial primary season begins and the midterm elections approach, every candidate must be pressed to take a clear, public stand on the Georgia Medicare for All bill. The question is no longer whether we can afford to pass Medicare for All ā itās whether we can afford not to.
Gabriel Sanchez is a Georgia Representative serving House District 42.Ā
Toby Terwilliger, M.D. is an Atlanta-based physician who sits on the Board of Directors of Physicians for a National Health Program.
