atlantanewsfirst.com · Abby Kousouris · September 8, 2026
Work requirements or full coverage?: Georgia governor hopefuls roll out healthcare proposals
# Work requirements or full coverage?: Georgia governor hopefuls roll out healthcare proposals
A new University of Georgia poll shows more than three-quarters of likely voters consider a candidate’s stance on healthcare a deciding factor.
By Abby Kousouris
Published: Sep. 8, 2026 at 7:28 PM EDT| Updated: 31 minutes ago
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — The high-stakes battle for Georgia’s next governor shifted directly to health care policy on Tuesday, as Republican nominee Rick Jackson rolled out a sweeping legislative roadmap and Democratic nominee Keisha Lance Bottoms countered with demands for full Medicaid expansion.
The debate comes amid a new University of Georgia poll showing that more than three-quarters of likely voters consider a candidate’s stance on health care a deciding factor in their vote.
According to the poll, voters across the political spectrum share the same anxieties about obtaining and paying for medical care.
Jackson, a health care executive, detailed his platform, titled “The Jackson Action Plan,” inside a packed hotel ballroom.
“I believe every Georgian should have access to healthcare coverage or insurance,” Jackson said. “So on day one, I will close the coverage gap with intelligent Medicaid expansion.”
Jackson’s plan relies on a custom, state-designed waiver with strict work, education or training requirements for able-bodied recipients, which he argues will protect taxpayers and strip power from insurance companies.
“Healthcare decisions should be made by patients, families, and doctors, not routinely delayed or denied by an insurance company trying to protect its profit margin,” Jackson said.
Jackson’s newly detailed health care roadmap also outlines several major actionable items, including stabilizing rural hospitals, expanding rural doctor residency slots and enacting fair medical liability reform. Additionally, his plan proposes mandating strict health care price transparency, creating portable patient-controlled digital health records and adding 500 inpatient psychiatric beds to address the state’s mental health crisis.
Bottoms slammed the proposal as a corporate distraction, holding firm to her platform of full federal Medicaid expansion.
Bottoms argued that leaving hundreds of thousands of residents uninsured places a crushing, daily burden on local emergency rooms.
“And it will also help us with our healthcare system that’s teetering on the edge right now, because even if you don’t need Medicaid, when you go into an emergency room,” Bottoms said.
Bottoms also commented on Jackson’s corporate background, claiming his private health care companies have spent years profiting off a fractured medical system.
“That’s not somebody who cares about a healthy and home system,” Bottoms said. “That’s someone who makes money off of a broken healthcare system.”
The future of health care for hundreds of thousands of Georgians hangs in the balance as the state’s current health care waiver, Georgia Pathways, is set to expire this December.
The next governor will decide exactly how—and if—the state continues to fund and administer health care coverage for low-income residents.
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