Protecting Public Health and Safety

One of the Secretary of State’s most important duties is to ensure that Georgia’s 380,000+ licensed professionals adhere to the highest standards of conduct. These dedicated men and women provide the services that guarantee the wellbeing of our communities – they include professions like nurses, nursing home administrators, veterinarians, general contractors, architects and engineers – these are professionals who care for our health, look out for our kids and look after our mothers and fathers in their old age.

For that reason, Georgia needs a Secretary of State who will fight to strengthen public health, improve public safety and crack down on individuals trying to abuse the system.

Cracking Down on Abusive Nursing Homes

We all want our mothers and fathers to be well taken care of as they grow older. And that’s why many families entrust nursing homes with the care of their loved ones. Most nursing homes are run by dedicated caring professionals, but unfortunately there still exist some very worrying examples of unscrupulous operators who abuse the public trust. That’s why we have to do better to ensure that licensed nursing homes are operating safely, delivering the care that senior Georgians deserve and making sure they are treated with dignity and compassion.

My plan will employ stiffer and more thorough background checks for all nursing home administrator applicants and ensure that greater oversight is implemented to catch abusive nursing home managers within days, not weeks or months. My oversight plan will be designed to detect the three major underlying causes of elder mistreatment according to the National Center for Elder Abuse:

· Stressful working conditions, particularly staff shortages
· Staff burnout
· Inadequate staff training

I will push for more stringent staffing regulations to provide for adequate staffing at all our nursing homes across the state. I will also call for more thorough and frequent training requirements so that nursing home staff are sufficiently trained to do their vital jobs.

Public Safety

The most important aspect of overseeing Georgia’s licensed professionals is ensuring the health and safety of our citizens. I will vigorously investigate professional misconduct on behalf of Georgia citizens. I will also make it easier for Georgians to report misconduct by establishing a hotline for Georgians. A real person at the Secretary of State’s Office will then coordinate with the appropriate licensing board to make sure the alleged professional misconduct is investigated. We will make sure the investigative process remains confidential. However, if a licensed professional is found to have violated Georgia law, then we will make sure the public knows about the penalty imposed, whether it’s a suspended or revoked license or some other reprimand. The public must have confidence that all licensed professionals are meeting the high standards of their profession.

We will also make sure folks practicing a trade without a license are identified, arrested and prosecuted. By working with local law enforcement and community leaders, I will be able to identify these unscrupulous individuals and put them behind bars. It’s important that Georgians can rely on their Secretary of State to make sure their health and safety are looked after.

In addition, upon coming to office I will conduct a full audit of professions in Georgia to make sure that all professions that need to be are subject to licensure requirements. To the extent that professions that affect the public health and safety of Georgians are not licensed, I will work hard with the legislature to make sure we have proper oversight so that they become licensed. One example of a service that should be licensed is home inspection.

Efficient Licensure Procedures

As Secretary of State, I will expand e-government technology to make information about licensed professionals readily available online so that consumers can find out important information before they contract a licensed professional. I will also utilize this advanced technology to afford licensed professional’s the same access so that they can conduct business in the state of Georgia as efficiently as possible without compromising accountability or public health and safety.

I will streamline the licensure process by offering more frequent testing and will provide test-takers with immediate results so they can be licensed as quickly as possible.

We will also work with the legislature to make sure our laws and regulations don’t add unnecessary red tape to the process of getting licensed in Georgia, especially if those folks are already licensed individuals from other states who are moving to Georgia.