FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                 September 19, 2025

CONTACT: press@keishaforgovernor.com

Bottoms on New Report Exposing GOP’s “Pathways to Coverage” Spent More on Admin Than Health Care for Georgians ‘It’s Past Time for Georgia to Expand Medicaid’’

ATLANTA — In light of a newly released federal watchdog report revealing that Georgia’s “Pathways to Coverage” program has spent far more on administrative costs than on actual health care services, Democratic candidate for Governor Keisha Lance Bottoms called today for urgent accountability and a shift in priorities to ensure Georgians get the care they deserve. 

Keisha Lance Bottoms released the following statement:

“This report makes one thing painfully clear: Georgia Republicans’ Medicaid program has been rigged to spend more on bureaucracy and consultants than on people’s health. That’s not just wasteful — it’s immoral. Instead of expanding Medicaid and giving hundreds of thousands of Georgians access to life-saving care, Georgia Republicans chose to build a system that drowns people in red tape and funnels taxpayer dollars into paperwork, consultants, and politics.

“It’s past time for Georgia to expand Medicaid – and that’s exactly what I’ll do as Governor. I’ll bring fiscal responsibility back to our state health care system by ending the waste and abuse in the Georgia Pathways program and ensuring that every dollar we invest in health care goes straight to better care and lower costs for Georgians.”

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) confirmed that between 2021 and mid-2025, Georgia spent approximately $54.2 million on administration under Gov. Brian Kemp’s Pathways program, while only about $26.2 million went toward care. The bulk of those costs were spent on consultants, while Georgia enrolled fewer than 4,300 people in health care in its first year – far short of its 25,000 personal goal.

The GAO report also found that Georgia wasted taxpayer dollars by incorrectly approving higher federal matching rates for administrative costs. Georgia’s Pathways program was seen as a model for President Trump’s Medicaid changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill.

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