- Feb 20
- 3 min read
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 20, 2026
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Senate Democrats Score Major Victories in State Budget Passage
Georgia college students will finally have a needs-based financial aid option
Senate Bill 427 will enable internationally-trained physicians to work in Georgia
Atlanta, Ga. — Two major Senate Democratic Caucus priorities passed the Senate today, helping solve the affordability crisis by funding needs-based scholarships and tackling Georgia’s doctor shortage.
The lack of qualified medical professionals harms Georgians everywhere, especially those in rural communities. Senate Bill 427 tackles that issue by increasing the supply of trained physicians and improving the affordability of medical care in Georgia.
Sen. Orrock’s leadership and study committee created a needs-based aid program that will provide students with another avenue of affording a college education.
"After years of working on this legislation, I'm beyond excited that my former Senate Bill 142 has finally passed the Senate. It is high time we allow the highly-trained and qualified physicians who have moved here from other countries to follow a pathway to re-licensure,” Minority Whip Kim Jackson said. “Our rural and underserved areas around the state desperately need medical help, and this is one way we can help fill the huge gaps in healthcare affecting countless Georgians."
“Georgia will now have a strong system of need-based aid to level the playing field for Georgia students. Over the past-half century, the cost of college has risen far faster than family incomes and created a barrier to a better life for too many people. While HOPE and Zell Miller scholarships used to be enough to open doors of higher education for thousands of kids, it falls far too short to meet the needs of students today,” Senator Nan Orrock said. “Through bipartisan collaboration, I helped secure the funding to better ensure students have more resources to gain an education. These are not students without ambition—many are the first in their family to go to college—they’re students without options. That’s what this is about: providing more options. Education fuels opportunity so when we invest in students, we all win.”
About Senate Bill 427:
Georgia ranks in the bottom half U.S. states for primary care and physician availability. By 2030, Georgia is expected to be short more than 8,000 doctors. 143 out of 159 counties are in a health professional shortage area, affecting more than 2.7 million Georgia residents.
Minority Whip Kim Jackson (D-Stone Mountain) is a longtime advocate for bringing more qualified physicians to the state. Whip Jackson is the lead Democrat on Senate Bill 47 which will provide certain internationally-trained physicians a limited provisional medical license and create a pathway for them to a full license.
An internationally-trained physician can apply for a special provisional license allowing them to practice in Georgia under a fully-licensed supervising physician.
To gain a full license, the internationally-trained physician would need to complete 4 years of supervised practice under the provisional license and complete an additional 2 years of practice in an underserved area
About Needs-Based Financial Aid:
Georgia is a national outlier in providing needs-based financial aid for college students. College costs have increased by more than 150% since 2000 with the average price reaching almost $25,000 in 2020. The National College Attainment Network found that less than a quarter of 4-year public universities are affordable. Georgia has the second-highest student loan debt in the country.
Senator Nan Orrock (D-Atlanta), a vocal advocate for providing a needs-based scholarship for Georgia students, chaired a Senate committee that met several times in 2025 to study college affordability. Sen. Orrock’s committee suggested $120 million in annual funding could fund roughly 99,000 Georgia students per year.
In January 2026, Governor Kemp announced $325 million in one-time state funding for a needs-based financial aid program. Senate Republicans, instead, appropriated only $100 million for such a program.
Georgia Senate Democrats are available for comment
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