Georgia lawmakers target cancer care gap in rural areas
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Georgia state lawmakers are studying how increasing access to early lifesaving care can reduce cancer rates in rural areas and fix disparities compared to major metros.
Why it matters: Cancer is Georgia's second leading cause of death, according to the state Department of Public Health, and residents outside metro areas face significant obstacles to care, from long travel distances to lack of insurance and limited screening options.
- In addition, rural hospitals are closing and counties have struggled to attract physicians and other medical professionals.
The big picture: Georgia's overall cancer incidence rate is higher than the U.S. average, Cherie Drenzek, DPH's state epidemiologist and chief science officer, said on Thursday at the first meeting of a study committee.
- Lung and colorectal cancer remain the top killers, according to the agency.
Stunning stat: A 2024 11Alive investigation revealed an unusually high rate of thyroid cancer cases — more than double the national average — in six northeast Georgia counties.
- According to 11 Alive, DPH officials were first alerted to the issue in 2023 but did not allocate additional resources to study the spike, saying the geographic area was too large to consider a "cluster."
Zoom in: Potential solutions include mobile screening, expanding rural broadband access for telehealth, increasing physician recruitment, and more access to health insurance.
Between the lines: 15.9% of non-metro residents in Georgia are uninsured, according to 2022 data collected by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Rural Health Information Lab, compared with roughly 13.2% in metros.
What they're saying: "Transportation is a huge issue," said Harsha Vyas, a hematologist and medical oncologist at the Cancer Center of Middle Georgia.
- "My patients typically travel 30 to 50 miles. ... We just don't have Uber or transportation services or buses or anything like that here."
What's next: The committee will meet across the state for the rest of 2025 and present recommendations and suggested legislative fixes for the Georgia General Assembly in January.