--- title: HR 283. Community Health Centers Day; 02/20/25; Georgia Primary Care Association; recognize collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hr283 cite_as: HR 283, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr283 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr283.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr283/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70452 date: 2025-02-18 status: passed 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. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr282.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr284.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 131 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr283.md?full=1 bill_number: HR 283 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-02-18 last_action: House Read and Adopted sponsors: - Butch Parrish - Darlene Taylor - Gerald Greene - Mack Jackson - Debbie Buckner - William Werkheiser text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HR283/2025 upstream_id: 1974387 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - community health centers - health care access - Medicaid - Georgia Primary Care Association --- # HR 283. Community Health Centers Day; 02/20/25; Georgia Primary Care Association; recognize ## Text House Resolution 283 By: Representatives Parrish of the 158th, Taylor of the 173rd, Greene of the 154th, Jackson of the 128th, Buckner of the 137th, and others A RESOLUTION Recognizing February 20, 2025, as Community Health Centers Day and commending the Georgia Primary Care Association; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, Federally Qualified Health Centers located in 330 medically underserved communities provide high-quality primary and preventive health care to more than 700,000 people in the State of Georgia, including more than 196,000 Medicaid recipients and 186,000 uninsured, the working poor, and numerous underinsured, elderly, homeless, and other vulnerable populations, without regard to income status, cultural or ethnic heritage, or disease conditions; and WHEREAS, Community Health Centers contribute more than $1.2 billion per year to Georgia's economy through indirect and induced economic activity, including $488 million in household income and 4,509 Georgia jobs, saving the Georgia Medicaid program up to 33 percent in annual spending per Medicaid beneficiary; and WHEREAS, Community Health Centers recruit and retain more than 1,500 health care professionals where they are most needed and offer access to a wide range of cost-effective medical and dental services, behavioral health services, prescription medicines, health education, nutrition counseling, translation services, community outreach, transportation, and other support programs; and WHEREAS, Community Health Centers have a track record spanning nearly six decades of controlling costs, documented in several studies that show rates of costly emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and specialty care referrals are much lower among health center patients; and WHEREAS, Community Health Centers work in partnership with other health care providers, local hospitals, health departments, social service agencies, and health-related support organizations to maximize resources and ensure that services are coordinated to improve the health status of the community; and WHEREAS, Community Health Centers have been innovators in the establishment of patient-centered medical homes, providing access to quality care and continuity of care for the patients they serve; and WHEREAS, Georgia's Community Health Centers and their state organization, the Georgia Primary Care Association, have worked diligently to increase the number of Community Health Centers in Georgia and have taken a leadership role in establishing more health centers in underserved communities to help resolve this state's health care access problems, demonstrating commendable efforts in continuous quality improvement, reduction of health disparities among the underserved, implementation of new health care initiatives such as the integration of medical and behavioral health services, and utilization of the latest technology to improve operations and delivery of services to more Georgians; and WHEREAS, Community Health Centers deserve commendation for their valuable contributions in expanding access to health care, their outstanding record of service, and their dedication to improving health care and the health status of Georgians. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the members of this body recognize February 20, 2025, as Community Health Centers Day and commend the Georgia Primary Care Association for its laudable service to patients in Georgia. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized and directed to make an appropriate copy of this resolution available for distribution to the Georgia Primary Care Association. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia House resolution recognizes February 20, 2025, as Community Health Centers Day and commends the Georgia Primary Care Association for its work expanding health care access across the state. ### Plain-language summary This resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives designates February 20, 2025, as Community Health Centers Day. It highlights the role of Federally Qualified Health Centers, which serve more than 700,000 Georgians including Medicaid recipients, uninsured residents, and other vulnerable populations across medically underserved communities. The resolution recounts the economic and health impact of these centers, including over $1.2 billion contributed annually to Georgia's economy and thousands of jobs supported. It formally commends the Georgia Primary Care Association, the state organization representing these centers, for its efforts to expand access to care and improve health outcomes. The resolution directs the Clerk of the House to provide a copy to the Association. As a resolution rather than a law, it does not create new requirements, funding, or penalties. ### What it does - Formally recognizes February 20, 2025, as Community Health Centers Day in Georgia. - Commends the Georgia Primary Care Association for its work supporting community health centers statewide. - Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to prepare and distribute a copy of the resolution to the Association. - Does not create any new law, funding, or regulatory requirement; it is a symbolic statement by the House. ### Who it affects The resolution directly names Georgia's Federally Qualified Health Centers, the Georgia Primary Care Association, and the patients they serve, including Medicaid recipients, uninsured and underinsured residents, elderly and homeless individuals, and health care professionals working at these centers. ### Why it matters While the resolution carries no legal or funding changes, it publicly acknowledges the role community health centers play in providing care to underserved Georgians and marks a specific day of recognition, which can raise awareness of these centers' services and economic impact. ### Key provisions - The resolution's whereas clauses describe community health centers serving over 700,000 Georgians, including 196,000 Medicaid recipients and 186,000 uninsured people. - It cites an economic contribution of more than $1.2 billion annually to Georgia's economy, including $488 million in household income and 4,509 jobs. - The resolving clause designates February 20, 2025, as Community Health Centers Day and commends the Georgia Primary Care Association. - A further resolving clause directs the Clerk of the House to make a copy available for distribution to the Association. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-02-18) - Last action: House Read and Adopted (2025-02-18) - Sponsors: Butch Parrish, Darlene Taylor, Gerald Greene, Mack Jackson, Debbie Buckner, William Werkheiser - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70452 > The history, votes, and amendments (131 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr283.md?full=1