--- title: SR 963. Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; commend collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr963 cite_as: SR 963, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr963 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr963.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr963/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74123 date: 2026-03-18 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/sr962.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr964.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 94 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr963.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 963 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2026-03-18 last_action: Senate Read and Adopted sponsors: - Kay Kirkpatrick - Ed Setzler - John Albers - Jaha Howard - Michael Rhett text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR963/2025 upstream_id: 2134479 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - neonatal care - hospital recognition - Wellstar Kennestone - Georgia Senate resolution - premature infants --- # SR 963. Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; commend ## Text Senate Resolution 963 By: Senators Kirkpatrick of the 32nd, Setzler of the 37th, Albers of the 56th, Howard of the 35th and Rhett of the 33rd A RESOLUTION Commending the Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, the Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center currently operates a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) designed to care for premature and medically complex newborns through advanced respiratory support, continuous monitoring, and life-saving interventions; and WHEREAS, the NICU at Wellstar Kennestone is staffed by neonatologists, neonatal nurses, respiratory therapists, and pediatric specialists who dedicate innumerable hours of their time, energy, and expertise toward ensuring that our most vulnerable Georgians receive the best medical care possible; and WHEREAS, in the United States, approximately 10 percent of all babies are born before 37 weeks of gestation, and prematurity is one of the leading global causes of infant illness and death; and WHEREAS, prompt NICU care significantly improves survival outcomes and substantially reduces mortality during the first week of life for vulnerable newborns, especially for those born very prematurely or at an extremely low birth weight; and WHEREAS, through the continued dedication of NICU healthcare professionals and advancements in neonatal medicine, survival rates for infants born between roughly 22 and 28 weeks of gestation have increased significantly in recent years, approaching nearly 78 percent; and WHEREAS, NICU healthcare professionals further provide crucial information, reassurance, and security for parents of premature infants, reducing the inherent stress of newborn hospitalization and assuaging associated feelings of guilt, shock, and helplessness; and WHEREAS, it is abundantly fitting and proper that this exemplary neonatal unit and its exceptional employees be appropriately honored during this special time for the vital care they provide to our most critical youth. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body commend the Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and its committed healthcare professionals for their service on behalf of this state's premature infants and extend best wishes for continued success in their mission to save lives. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed to make an appropriate copy of this resolution available for distribution to the Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. ## 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 Senate resolution commends Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and its staff for their care of premature and medically complex newborns. ### Plain-language summary This is a ceremonial resolution from the Georgia Senate rather than a change to state law. It praises the Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center for the care it provides to premature and medically fragile newborns, citing statistics about premature birth rates and improving survival outcomes for very early or low birth weight infants. The resolution formally states that the Senate commends the NICU and its healthcare professionals, including neonatologists, nurses, respiratory therapists, and pediatric specialists, for their work. It directs the Secretary of the Senate to prepare a copy of the resolution for distribution to the NICU as a token of recognition. It does not create any new requirement, funding, or legal change. ### What it does - Formally commends Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and its healthcare staff on behalf of the Georgia Senate. - Directs the Secretary of the Senate to prepare and distribute a copy of the resolution to the NICU. - Makes no change to Georgia law, funding, or regulations since it is a commendatory resolution rather than legislation. ### Who it affects The resolution directly names Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and its neonatologists, nurses, respiratory therapists, and pediatric specialists. It has no legal effect on the broader public, hospitals generally, or state agencies. ### Why it matters The resolution has no legal or financial effect on Georgians. Its significance is symbolic: it publicly recognizes a specific hospital unit and its staff for their work caring for premature and medically complex newborns in the state. ### Key provisions - The resolution's whereas clauses describe the NICU's Level III designation, its staffing, and national statistics on premature birth and survival rates. - The first resolving clause has the Senate commend the NICU and its healthcare professionals for their service to premature infants. - The second resolving clause directs the Secretary of the Senate to make a copy of the resolution available for distribution to the NICU. ## Status - Status: Passed (2026-03-18) - Last action: Senate Read and Adopted (2026-03-18) - Sponsors: Kay Kirkpatrick, Ed Setzler, John Albers, Jaha Howard, Michael Rhett - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74123 > The history, votes, and amendments (94 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr963.md?full=1