Committee advances bill to expand Medicaid coverage of tobacco‑cessation products

The Senate Health and Human Services Committee voted unanimously to advance House Bill 506, which would expand Medicaid coverage of tobacco‑cessation therapies, including nicotine replacement and counseling, and remove prior‑authorization restrictions that limited some treatments.

Representative Scott Hilton, the bill sponsor, said Medicaid recipients smoke at roughly twice the rate of privately insured residents and that smoking‑related illnesses cost the state about $700 million a year. He framed the bill as a preventive investment that could reduce long‑term Medicaid spending.

Brandy Sylvan, Director of Government Relations for the Georgia Department of Community Health, told the committee that many cessation products and therapies are already covered and that the department identified only a small number of prior‑authorization limits. “We actually do largely cover these products and therapies, but we did identify where there were some prior authorization limitations,” Sylvan said. She added the current pharmacy spend in this area is small, estimating roughly $200,000 under current coverage.

Senator Ollrich, speaking from personal experience as a former smoker, praised the bill’s coverage expansion as a useful public‑health step. Committee members asked for clarifications about what specific treatments would be covered; Sylvan said she would provide the committee a list of covered medications and therapies compiled with the American Heart Association and the American Lung Association.

The committee moved the bill forward by unanimous voice vote; one senator asked for a clearer cost figure and officials said the department does not expect a significant increase in plan costs if prior‑authorization limits are removed.

The bill now moves to the Senate floor for additional consideration.