Bill to expand access to trauma care clears House

By Shelia M. Poole and Nancy Badertscher

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Georgia’s statewide trauma system could receive a huge infusion of cash through a $10 surcharge on annual auto tag renewals under a proposed constitutional amendment that passed Thursday in the final hours of the 2010 General Assembly session.

The money -- as much as $80 million a year -- could help existing trauma centers such as Grady Memorial Hospital expand access to trauma care to rural Georgia, provided voters agreed in a referendum in November.

With only hours left in the General Assembly's 2010 session, the bill won final passage Thursday night when it cleared the state Senate 46-2. Supporters -- who argue that more and better trauma care will save hundreds of lives each year -- applauded the Senate vote.

"This is absolutely huge," said Dr. Dennis Ashley, chairman of the Georgia Trauma Care Network Commission, which pushed for the bill. "This is a victory for all Georgians who are potential patients. Trauma affects us all, and it's a very quick actor. No one goes to work in the morning thinking I'm going to have an accident on my way to work."

With 8 million cars in Georgia, the fee could raise $80 million, lawmakers were told.

The House voted 149-14 for the bill, which was championed by rural lawmakers.

Ashley said the state has 16 trauma centers, but there is a huge coverage gap, particularly in rural areas.

Kevin Bloye, a spokesman for the Georgia Hospital Association, said the lack of access to trauma centers has been a lingering concern.

“There are huge gaps in the state, especially south of Macon," Bloye said. "It’s a very expensive service to deliver, but also a lifesaving service that we need to make sure we can fund and grow to meet the demands of the state.”

The bill would help other hospitals upgrade to trauma centers. The upgrades could include technology and recruitment of specialists and surgeons. Emergency medical services also could use funds to develop better systems for transporting badly injured patients to hospitals quickly.

Grady Memorial Hospital operates one of the busiest trauma centers in the Southeast, seeing about 3,000 trauma patients annually, spokesman Matt Gove said.

The legislation "would be an important step in creating the kind of trauma network that the state needs and also helping support the larger-volume trauma centers like Grady," Gove said. "Trauma is not a moneymaker for most hospitals, so the funding helps fill that gap."

Rep. Mickey Channell (R-Greensboro), a longtime health care advocate in the House, said about 700 Georgians die every year due to “Georgia’s inadequate trauma care network.”

The source of funding, he said, is tied to studies showing half of all trauma cases are due to vehicle accidents.

Rep. Doug Collins (R-Gainesville) supported passage of the bill, drawing on his experience as a U.S. Air Force reservist in Iraq.

“If we can take those young men and women seriously injured on a battlefield and have a 98 percent success rate of getting them out alive and back home," he said, "then I think we can do better in Georgia.”

Staff writer Ernie Suggs contributed to this article.