SB367: SB367 Certificate of Need; health care facilities, services, and equipment dedicated exclusively to the treatment of cancer; provide for exemption

Georgia's certificate of need law (O.C.G.A. § 31-6-47) generally requires health care providers to get state approval before building new facilities, adding services, or buying major medical equipment, a process meant to control health care costs and avoid duplicating services. This bill adds a new exemption for facilities, services, and equipment dedicated primarily or exclusively to treating cancer, covering hospitals, clinics, surgical centers, radiation and proton therapy equipment, chemotherapy and infusion services, cancer clinical trials, and hospice or supportive care for cancer patients. To use the exemption, providers must follow federal and state oncology regulations, report patient volume and treatment data to the Department of Community Health, and file annual reports. The exemption applies no matter who owns the facility or where in the state it is located, except it does not apply to any facility within 35 miles of an existing sole community hospital that already offers chemotherapy or radiation therapy. The bill repeals conflicting laws and does not state a separate effective date beyond the Act's general approval.

• Exempts cancer treatment hospitals, clinics, surgical centers, and freestanding facilities from Georgia's certificate of need approval requirement.
• Exempts cancer-specific medical equipment such as linear accelerators, proton therapy systems, and PET scanners used mainly for cancer detection, diagnosis, or treatment.
• Exempts outpatient cancer services like radiation therapy, chemotherapy, infusion therapy, and precision medicine programs from certificate of need review.
• Requires exempt facilities to follow federal and state oncology rules, submit patient data, and file annual reports to the Department of Community Health.
• Blocks the exemption for any new facility located within 35 miles of an existing sole community hospital that already provides chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

Hospitals, clinics, and freestanding facilities that treat cancer patients; medical equipment providers offering radiation or proton therapy machines; rural sole community hospitals that already provide chemotherapy or radiation therapy; cancer patients seeking new or expanded treatment options; and the Department of Community Health, which oversees certificate of need reviews and would collect the new reports.

Providers could open or expand cancer treatment facilities and buy specialized equipment without first getting state certificate of need approval, potentially speeding up access to care. But the 35-mile carve-out means rural hospitals that already offer cancer treatment could still block nearby competitors from using the exemption.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 31-6-47(a) by adding paragraph (36), creating a new certificate of need exemption for facilities, services, and equipment primarily or exclusively dedicated to cancer treatment.
• The exemption covers hospitals, clinics, surgical centers, cancer-specific equipment like linear accelerators and PET scanners, outpatient cancer services, clinical trial facilities, and hospice or supportive care for cancer patients.
• Exempt facilities must comply with federal and state oncology regulations, submit patient volume and treatment data, and file annual reports under O.C.G.A. § 31-6-70.
• The exemption applies regardless of who owns the facility, its hospital affiliation, or its location in the state.
• The exemption does not apply to facilities within 35 miles of an existing sole community hospital (as defined under 42 C.F.R. 412.92) that already offers chemotherapy or radiation therapy.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-10House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-03-09House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-06Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
4. 2026-03-06Senate Third Read (Senate)
5. 2026-03-06Senate Taken from Table (Senate)
6. 2026-03-06Senate Tabled (Senate)
7. 2026-03-04Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
8. 2026-03-03Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate)

• Bill Cowsert (R, SD-046)Primary sponsor
• Greg Dolezal (R, SD-027)
• Ben Watson (R, SD-001)
• Kay Kirkpatrick (R, SD-032)
• Randy Robertson (R, SD-029)
• Jason Anavitarte (R, SD-031)
• Clint Dixon (R, SD-045)
• Ed Harbison (D, SD-015)

1. PassedSenate voteMarch 6, 2026

   32 yea, 17 nay (1 not voting, 5 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #684

• certificate of need
• cancer treatment
• health care regulation
• hospitals
• medical equipment