Rick Jackson, the Republican nominee for governor of Georgia, supports the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which KFF projects will leave 150,000 more Georgians without health insurance in 2034, about 120,000 of them people who lose marketplace coverage. His campaign told Fox News on April 27, 2026 that he supports the bill, "Period."
Two months earlier, in February 2026, Jackson Physician Search, the recruiting firm of the Jackson Healthcare company he founded and leads, published a report that cited the Congressional Budget Office's projection of more than 10 million Americans losing coverage, a loss the report tied to eligibility rules and work requirements and to expiring tax credits.
What the Law Rick Jackson Supports Costs Georgia's Health Coverage
- The law leaves 150,000 more Georgians uninsured in 2034, 120,000 of them from the marketplace. KFF's state estimates put the law's effect in Georgia at 150,000 more uninsured people in 2034, a 1-point rise in the state's uninsured rate: about 120,000 who lose subsidized marketplace coverage, 32,000 who lose Medicaid and 7,500 who lose Medicare or other coverage. People without coverage put off doctor visits and prescriptions and pay hospital bills themselves, or leave them unpaid for hospitals to absorb.
- Georgia loses $7.6 billion in federal Medicaid money over ten years. KFF's allocation of the Congressional Budget Office estimate puts Georgia's share of the law's federal Medicaid cut at $7.6 billion over ten years, 6 percent of what the state would otherwise receive, money that pays Georgia hospitals, nursing homes and doctors for the care of Medicaid patients.
- From January 2027, Georgia Medicaid pays for fewer weeks of care received before an application. Georgia is among the states where the law's limit on retroactive Medicaid coverage applies, KFF reports; from January 1, 2027, Medicaid covers bills from one or two months before an application instead of 90 days, so a Georgian who applies after an emergency hospital stay can be left with the bills from the weeks before that window.
Rick Jackson's Support for the Law, and the Coverage Losses His Company's Report Cited
- Jackson Backs the Law Projected to Leave 10 Million More Americans Uninsured. Rick Jackson's campaign spokesman, Mike Schrimpf, told Fox News Digital on April 27, 2026: "Rick supports the Big Beautiful Bill. Period." The same statement said Jackson "has long opposed Obamacare," the law whose marketplace covers most of the Georgians the bill is projected to leave uninsured. The Congressional Budget Office projects the law will leave 10 million more people uninsured nationwide in 2034, as KFF reports.
- The Law Jackson Backs Shortens Medicaid's Coverage of Bills From Before an Application, From January 2027. The law Rick Jackson supports cuts Medicaid's retroactive coverage from the 90 days before an application to one month for adults covered through Medicaid expansion and two months for other enrollees, starting January 1, 2027. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the change will cut federal Medicaid spending by $4 billion over ten years and leave 100,000 more people uninsured in 2034, as KFF reports, and the care received before the shorter window is no longer paid by Medicaid.
- Jackson Backs the Law "Period," Two Months After His Company's Report Cited a CBO Projection of More Than 10 Million Losing Coverage. In an April 27, 2026 statement to Fox News, Rick Jackson's campaign put no limit on his support for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. In February 2026, Jackson Physician Search, part of the company Jackson founded and leads, wrote in its recruitment report that the Congressional Budget Office "projects that more than 10 million Americans will lose coverage due to eligibility rules, work requirements, and expiring tax credits." The same report said "Medicare and Medicaid cuts are creating significant financial pressure across healthcare organizations," naming community health centers and small and mid-sized hospitals, which it said run on margins of 1 to 3 percent, as particularly exposed.
Frequently Asked Questions About Rick Jackson on Georgia health coverage
What is Rick Jackson's record on health coverage in Georgia under Trump?
Rick Jackson backs a law that KFF expects to add 150,000 Georgians to the uninsured by 2034 and that takes about $7.6 billion in federal Medicaid money from Georgia over ten years. His own company's recruiting firm, in a February 2026 report, cited a Congressional Budget Office estimate that over 10 million Americans would lose coverage, which it blamed on expiring tax credits as well as eligibility rules and work requirements, two months before his campaign said he supports the bill without qualification.
What did Rick Jackson's company say the law he supports would do to hospitals?
Rick Jackson's company, Jackson Physician Search, wrote in its February 2026 report that with rural areas set to lose Medicaid money, "there is considerable fear and uncertainty about the coming changes," and in September 2025 it warned that under the law some health care organizations "must find ways to adapt or close their doors."
When do the coverage cuts Rick Jackson supports reach Georgia?
Under the law Rick Jackson supports, many lawfully present immigrants such as refugees and asylees lost Medicaid eligibility on October 1, 2026; on January 1, 2027, both the shorter retroactive-coverage window and the federal work requirement take effect, the latter changing the rules of Georgia Pathways; and from 2028 marketplace enrollees must have their eligibility verified before receiving tax credits.
Last updated: 2026-10-26