If Congress Unable to Reach Deal, Georgia Could See Consequences

U.S. Senate leaders announced they’ve reached a bipartisan agreement today to end a partial government shutdown and to avoid the possibility of financial default. Lawmakers are now working to get the agreement through both houses and onto the president’s desk before the midnight deadline. If Congress is unable to reach a deal and the U.S. defaults on its debt, Governor Deal says it could have major consequences for Georgia.

Governor Deal says if the U.S. government does default and Georgia can’t borrow at the federal level, it could affect programs like Medicare and Medicaid.

“If for example, if they decided to ratchet down the federal reimbursement on Medicaid, the state of Georgia would not be prepared to pick up the slack and that would mean we would not have the money to adequately reimburse the providers the hospitals and the doctors.”