SB 290: Health; certification of community health workers; provide

Georgia currently has no formal state certification for community health workers, the frontline workers who help connect underserved communities to health services. This bill would add a new chapter to Georgia law creating a certification system for them, run at first by a new Georgia Community Health Worker Certification Committee and later transferred to the Department of Public Health. The committee, made up of physicians, social workers, employers, and practicing community health workers, would set standards for approving training programs and certifying individuals. Applicants would need a high school diploma, be 18 or older, pass a background check, and complete an approved training program plus 2,000 hours of work experience, with alternate paths for people already working in the field before 2026. Certificates and program approvals would last up to two years. The committee would dissolve in 2029, handing its duties to the department. The law only takes effect if the legislature specifically funds it.

• Creates a new certification category called 'certified community health worker' and restricts use of that title to people who earn it.
• Establishes an 11-member Georgia Community Health Worker Certification Committee appointed by the state health commissioner to set standards and review applications.
• Requires training programs for community health workers to be approved by the committee, including at least 45 hours of core competency training.
• Sets certification requirements including age, education, background checks, references, and either training plus work experience or extended work history alone.
• Schedules the committee to dissolve on June 30, 2029, shifting its powers and duties permanently to the Department of Public Health.
• Makes the entire law contingent on the General Assembly specifically appropriating money to fund it.

Community health workers currently practicing or seeking certification in Georgia, organizations and schools that train them, employers such as hospitals, federally qualified health centers, and community based organizations, and the Department of Public Health, which would administer the new certification system.

If funded, the bill would give Georgia a formal credential for community health workers, potentially affecting who can use that job title, what training is required to work in the field, and how patients and employers verify a worker's qualifications and background.

• Code Section 31-31-1 defines key terms including 'community health worker,' 'certified community health worker,' and 'core competencies.'
• Code Section 31-31-2 creates the 11-member Georgia Community Health Worker Certification Committee, appointed by the commissioner of public health, with two nonvoting department representatives, serving staggered two-year terms.
• Code Section 31-31-3 sets the committee's meeting requirements, quorum rules, and lists its powers, including recommending training and certification standards and handling complaints and discipline.
• Code Section 31-31-4 requires training programs to be approved by the committee, including 45 hours of core competency training with 16 hours on specific health topics, and sets a renewal cycle of up to two years.
• Code Section 31-31-5 lists certification requirements for individuals, including age 18+, a high school diploma, references, a fingerprint background check, and 2,000 hours of relevant work experience.
• Section 2 makes the entire Act effective only if the General Assembly specifically appropriates funding for it in a future budget.

1. 2025-02-27Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2025-02-26Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Jason Anavitarte (R, SD-31)Primary sponsor

• community health workers
• health worker certification
• public health workforce
• Department of Public Health
• occupational licensing