Georgia CommonsHB 1296: Mental health; pilot program to support clinical research of certain veterans and first responders suffering from certain conditions; provide
Last action March 6, 2026 · Senate Read and Referred
House Bill 1296 would create a three-year pilot program letting Georgia's Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities fund clinical research and treatment of emerging therapies for veterans and retired first responders with PTSD and related conditions.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Comm Sub version, the latest LegiScan holds.
In plain language
Georgia currently has no dedicated state program funding experimental or breakthrough mental health treatments for veterans and retired first responders. This bill would add a new section to Georgia's mental health code creating the Breakthrough Treatments for Georgia Heroes Suicide Prevention Pilot Program, run by the state's mental health department starting January 1, 2027. The program would support clinical research and provide access to 'eligible breakthrough treatments,' a category that includes FDA breakthrough-designated devices and drugs, ibogaine-based therapies, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and similar treatments, for veterans and retired first responders suffering from PTSD, treatment-resistant depression, major depressive disorder, traumatic brain injury, or related conditions. Funds could pay for treatment sites, clinical trials, subsidized treatment costs, infrastructure, and workforce training. The department would partner with accredited Georgia colleges and universities, report annually to legislative leaders, and the program would automatically end and be repealed on January 1, 2030. The whole law only takes effect if the General Assembly specifically appropriates funding for it.
What the bill does
- Creates a new pilot program in Georgia's mental health code to fund clinical research on breakthrough treatments for veterans and retired first responders with PTSD and related conditions.
- Defines 'eligible breakthrough treatment' to include FDA breakthrough-designated drugs and devices, ibogaine-based therapies, and transcranial magnetic stimulation.
- Allows program funds to subsidize treatment costs, build clinical infrastructure in underserved areas, train healthcare workers, and run comparative and cost-effectiveness studies.
- Authorizes the department to partner with accredited Georgia colleges and universities to carry out the program.
- Requires an annual report to the Governor, legislative leaders, and relevant House and Senate committees on the program's implementation and effectiveness.
- Sets the program to automatically end and the law to be repealed on January 1, 2030, and makes the whole act effective only if the legislature appropriates funding for it.
Who it affects
Veterans and retired first responders (such as police officers and firefighters) suffering from PTSD, depression, or traumatic brain injury; Georgia's mental health department, which would run the program; and accredited Georgia colleges and universities that could partner on research.
Why it matters
If funded, eligible veterans and retired first responders could gain access to experimental treatments like ibogaine therapy or transcranial magnetic stimulation that are not otherwise widely available or covered, potentially affecting suicide prevention efforts among these groups. The program's existence depends entirely on the legislature deciding to fund it.
Key provisions
- New Code Section 37-1-8(a) defines 'eligible breakthrough treatment,' 'first responder,' 'veteran,' and the program name.
- Subsection (b) directs the department to run a three-year pilot beginning January 1, 2027, subject to appropriations, for veterans and retired first responders with PTSD and related conditions.
- Subsection (c) lists allowed uses of program funds, including clinical trials, treatment subsidies, infrastructure investment, and workforce training.
- Subsection (d) authorizes partnerships with accredited public and private Georgia colleges and universities.
- Subsection (f) requires an annual report by December 31 to the Governor, legislative leaders, and relevant health and veterans affairs committees.
- Subsection (h) terminates the program and repeals the Code section by operation of law on January 1, 2030.
- Section 2 makes the entire act effective only if the General Assembly specifically appropriates funds for it.
From the bill
“the department shall develop, implement, and conduct a three-year pilot program to support clinical research and provide eligible breakthrough treatment to veterans and retired first responders suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, treatment-resistant depression, major depressive disorder, traumatic brain injury, or other related conditions”
“The program developed by this Code section shall terminate on January 1, 2030, and this Code section shall be repealed by operation of law on such date.”
“This Act shall become effective only if funds are specifically appropriated for purposes of this Act in an appropriations Act enacted by the General Assembly.”
Status timeline
- Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House)
- House Third Readers (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
- House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Martin Momtahan (R, HD-017)
- Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
- Josh Bonner (R, HD-073)
- Charles Cannon (R, HD-172)
- Brian Prince (D, HD-132)
- Derrick McCollum (R, HD-030)
Votes
- House voteMarch 4, 2026
169 yea, 0 nay (5 not voting, 3 absent)
Topics
- veterans mental health
- first responders
- PTSD treatment
- suicide prevention
- mental health research funding