---
title: HB 1296. Mental health; pilot program to support clinical research of certain veterans and first responders suffering from certain conditions; provide
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1296
cite_as: HB 1296, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1296
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1296.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1296/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73173
date: 2026-03-06
status: engrossed
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 543
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1296.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1296
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-03-04
last_action: Senate Read and Referred
sponsors:
- Martin Momtahan
- Bill Hitchens
- Josh Bonner
- Charles Cannon
- Brian Prince
- Derrick McCollum
text_version: Comm Sub
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1296/2025
upstream_id: 2116210
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- veterans mental health
- first responders
- PTSD treatment
- suicide prevention
- mental health research funding
---
# HB 1296. Mental health; pilot program to support clinical research of certain veterans and first responders suffering from certain conditions; provide
## Text
House Bill 1296 (COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE)
By: Representatives Momtahan of the 17th, Hitchens of the 161st, Bonner of the 73rd, Cannon
of the 172nd, Prince of the 132nd, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Article 1 of Chapter 1 of Title 37 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to general provisions for governing and regulation of mental health, so as to provide
for a pilot program to support clinical research of certain eligible breakthrough treatments
and provide such treatments to certain veterans and first responders suffering from certain
conditions; to provide for definitions; to provide for funding and use of funds; to provide for
eligibility; to provide for an annual report; to provide for rules and regulations; to provide
for termination and automatic repeal; to provide for related matters; to provide for contingent
effectiveness upon appropriation of funds; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Article 1 of Chapter 1 of Title 37 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
general provisions for governing and regulation of mental health, is amended by adding a
new Code section to read as follows:
"37-1-8.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Eligible breakthrough treatment' means:
(A) Any medical device that has been granted breakthrough device designation by the
United States Food and Drug Administration in effect on or after January 1, 2026;
(B) Any approved or investigational drug that has been granted breakthrough therapy
designation by the United States Food and Drug Administration in effect on or after
January 1, 2026;
(C) Ibogaine or an ibogaine based therapeutic, including analogs;
(D) Transcranial magnetic stimulation, including investigational or approved
accelerated transcranial magnetic stimulation protocols; or
(E) Any other investigational or approved device or drug as determined by the
department; provided, however, that such investigational or approved device or drug
is substantially similar to a treatment described in this paragraph.
(2) 'First responder' shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section 26-4-116.2.
(3) 'Program' means the Breakthrough Treatments for Georgia Heroes Suicide Prevention
Pilot Program developed by this Code section.
(4) 'Veteran' shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section 50-5-131.
(b) Beginning on January 1, 2027, subject to appropriations, 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 as determined in rules and regulations
established by the department. Such program shall be known as the Breakthrough
Treatments for Georgia Heroes Suicide Prevention Pilot Program.
(c) Consistent with the program's purpose as described in subsection (b) of this Code
section, program funds may, without limitation, be used to:
(1) Establish a network of approved program sites in diverse geographic regions and
treatment settings with required standardized data collection, sharing, and analysis across
such sites;
(2) Conduct clinical research and implement studies of eligible breakthrough treatments,
including, but not limited to:
(A) Clinical trials of any breakthrough treatment for a relevant condition to support the
approval of any such treatment by the United States Food and Drug Administration;
(B) Clinical trials or real-world studies to inform optimal treatment delivery methods
that improve scalability and cost effectiveness;
(C) Comparative effectiveness trials; and
(D) Cost effectiveness analyses of approved breakthrough treatments and protocols
approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration;
(3) Subsidize the cost of eligible breakthrough treatments at approved program sites;
(4) Invest in clinical infrastructure, to include without limitation, facility, equipment, and
data collection system costs for approved program sites in underserved areas;
(5) Provide healthcare workforce education and training at approved program sites; and
(6) Establish and disseminate treatment guidelines for eligible breakthrough treatments.
(d) The department is authorized to enter into partnerships, memoranda of understanding,
or contracts with public and private postsecondary research institutions accredited by the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges in the State of
Georgia to facilitate the implementation and operation of the program.
(e) The department may apply for, receive, administer, and use any grant, other financial
assistance, or other funds made available to the department from any government or other
source for furthering the purposes of the program.
(f) The department shall provide an annual report by December 31 to the Governor, the
President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the chairpersons of
the House Committee on Health and the Senate Health and Human Services Committee,
and the chairpersons of the House Committee on Defense and Veterans Affairs and the
Senate Veterans, Military, and Homeland Security Committee. Such report shall include,
at a minimum, detailed information on the implementation and effectiveness of the
program.
(g) The department is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations as may be necessary
to carry out and implement the provisions of this Code section.
(h) 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."
SECTION 2.
(a) 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.
(b) If funds are so appropriated, then this Act shall become effective on the later of:
(1) The date on which such appropriations becomes effective; or
(2) The beginning date of the fiscal year for which such appropriations are made.
SECTION 3.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.
## Summaries written by Georgia Commons
The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.
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.
### Plain-language summary
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 it 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.
## Status
- Status: Engrossed (2026-03-04)
- Last action: Senate Read and Referred (2026-03-06)
- Sponsors: Martin Momtahan, Bill Hitchens, Josh Bonner, Charles Cannon, Brian Prince, Derrick McCollum
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73173
> The history, votes, and amendments (543 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1296.md?full=1