This is the whole path on one page: Medicaid first, then GAPP, the Georgia Pediatric Program, for nursing or personal care at home, and the option for a parent to be paid for approved personal support. Print it, write your own dates and contacts in the spaces at the end, and keep it with your child’s papers. Every rule here is cited to the GAPP policy manual (July 1, 2025 edition) or to Georgia Medicaid.
Step 1. Medicaid
GAPP needs full Georgia Medicaid, and it cannot be approved while a Medicaid application is pending. PeachCare for Kids is not eligible (GAPP manual §701, §925.11).
- A newborn whose mother had Medicaid at the birth is eligible for Newborn Medicaid through the month of the first birthday (Georgia Medicaid).
- Other children apply through DFCS, which looks for the category your child qualifies under.
- If your income is too high, Katie Beckett, also called TEFRA, can give a child 18 and under Medicaid without counting the parents’ income, based on the level of care the child needs. Apply through the Centralized Katie Beckett Medicaid Team, a DFCS office, or gateway.ga.gov.
Step 2. GAPP
Who qualifies. A child under 21 with full Georgia Medicaid whose medically necessary needs include skilled nursing, personal support or a behavioral support aide, judged on the child’s overall condition, equipment and the level and frequency of care needed, with physician’s orders (§601, §702.1.1). There is no list of qualifying diagnoses, and nursing-home level of care is no longer required.
What it pays for. Skilled nursing by an RN or LPN, personal support with feeding, bathing, dressing, hygiene, meals, moving and walking, and behavioral support aide services, all at home (§604.1, §604.2). Not at school, in the hospital or outside Georgia (§703.2.3), and not respite (§925.7). Approved care costs eligible families nothing.
How to apply.
- Choose a GAPP-approved agency. You apply through the agency, not the state, and you choose which agency (§703.1, §801.1).
- Your child’s doctor completes the physician’s orders and a statement of medical necessity, backed by recent office visit notes (§602.2, §805).
- The agency submits the request to Alliant Health Solutions, which has 30 days to review a complete request (§703.2.5). Send the paperwork at least 30 days before care should start (§703.3).
- If approved, care must start within 60 days (§703.3).
Hours. Approved as a monthly maximum for up to six months, then renewed. The renewal is due 30 days before the approval ends, and care in a gap caused by a late renewal is not paid (§819.4, §804.2, §817). A change in your child’s condition goes in as a change request within five days (§827).
Changing agencies. You can change agencies. Your current agency must keep providing care for at least 30 days if you want it to, and transfers start on the first of a month (§808, §820).
If GAPP is denied or hours are cut. Ask Alliant Health Solutions to reconsider within 30 calendar days of the decision letter, with documentation from your child’s physician. If that does not resolve it, request a fair hearing within 30 calendar days of the final letter. Keep your address current with DFCS, because the deadlines run from the date on the letter (§703.3).
At 21. GAPP ends on the 21st birthday. Plan six months to a year ahead for Georgia’s adult program.
Step 3. Getting paid as a parent
GAPP’s Family Caregiver Option lets a parent or other legally responsible adult family member who lives with the child be paid for the child’s approved personal support hours, as an employee of the GAPP agency. It never covers skilled nursing or behavioral support aide services, and foster parents are not eligible (§604.2, §604.3). The agency hires you with fingerprinting, a background check and a valid CPR card, trains you before you start, and a nurse supervises your care every two weeks (§907, §908.1, §919).
Checklists
Before you call an agency
- Your child’s Medicaid number, or where the Medicaid or Katie Beckett application stands.
- Your child’s diagnoses, as their doctors describe them.
- The equipment and daily care your child needs, day and night.
- The name and practice of the doctor who will complete the orders.
- Your child’s IEP, if they have one. It goes in with the request (§801).
- Your county, and when you need help most.
Questions to ask an agency
- Do you have nurses or aides in my county now who can cover my child’s hours?
- How many of them have cared for a child with needs like my child’s?
- What happens when a nurse calls out? Agencies must have back-up staffing provisions (§609.4).
- Who trains me, and who signs off my caregiver skills checklist?
- Do you hire parents through the Family Caregiver Option?
Leaving the hospital
- The hospital’s discharge planner knows you want nursing at home, early in the stay.
- A GAPP agency you chose is invited to the discharge planning meeting.
- The Letter of Understanding is signed at the planning meeting (§807, §921).
- An emergency contact is named, with phone numbers (§702.1.3).
- Nursing starts on the day your child comes home.
Becoming the paid caregiver
- Your child is approved for personal support hours.
- You live with your child and are their parent or other legally responsible adult.
- Fingerprinting and background check done.
- Valid CPR card.
- Training completed before your first shift.
My dates and contacts
| Item | Write it here |
|---|---|
| My child’s Medicaid number | |
| GAPP agency and phone | |
| Agency nurse supervisor | |
| Doctor who signs the orders | |
| Current GAPP approval ends | |
| GAPP renewal due (30 days before it ends) | |
| Katie Beckett renewal date | |
| My CPR card expires (paid caregivers) | |
| Emergency contact |
Useful contacts
| Who | How to reach them |
|---|---|
| GAPP Program Specialist, Department of Community Health | (404) 683-5113, GAPP.inquiries@dch.ga.gov |
| Centralized Katie Beckett Medicaid Team | 678-248-7449, or apply at gateway.ga.gov |
| Aging and Disability Resource Connection (adult programs, family caregivers) | 1-866-552-4464, option 2 |
| NOW and COMP waivers | DBHDD, through IDD Connects or a DBHDD Regional Field Office |
| Babies Can’t Wait (early intervention, birth to 3) | Georgia Department of Public Health, dph.georgia.gov |
| Georgia Advocacy Office (disability rights advice) | thegao.org |
| Parent to Parent of Georgia | p2pga.org |
Read more online
- The GAPP guide, cited section by section
- Katie Beckett checklist and Katie Beckett guide
- How to apply for GAPP
- How to become a paid caregiver for your child
- Going home from the NICU with nursing
- GAPP appeals
- Georgia programs for children with disabilities, compared
Questions about your own child? Tell us about your child and we will give you a straight answer, even if ARZN is not the right fit.
Common questions
Is there a printable guide to GAPP for parents in Georgia?
Yes. This guide puts the Georgia Pediatric Program (GAPP), Katie Beckett, getting paid as a parent and the main checklists on one printable page, with space to write your own dates and contacts. Every rule is cited to the GAPP policy manual or Georgia Medicaid.
What should I do first if my child needs nursing at home in Georgia?
Make sure your child has full Georgia Medicaid, through DFCS or, if your income is too high, Katie Beckett. Then choose a GAPP-approved agency, which submits the request for your child with the physician's orders.
Who do I contact about GAPP in Georgia?
Start with a GAPP-approved nursing agency, because families apply through an agency rather than to the state. The GAPP Program Specialist at the Department of Community Health can help if you need it, at (404) 683-5113 or GAPP.inquiries@dch.ga.gov.
Sources
- Georgia Department of Community Health, Part II Policies and Procedures for Georgia Pediatric Program (GAPP) In-Home Nursing, July 1, 2025 edition, published on GAMMIS under Provider Manuals.
- Georgia Department of Community Health, Georgia Pediatric Program (GAPP) provider presentation, June 2023, published on the Georgia Medicaid Management Information System portal.
- Georgia Medicaid, Waiver Programs.
- Georgia Department of Community Health, Community Based Services.
- Georgia Medicaid, TEFRA/Katie Beckett.
- Georgia Medicaid, Eligibility FAQs (Newborn Medicaid).
- Georgia Division of Aging Services, Aging and Disability Resource Connection FAQs.
Please read. This article is general information about a public program, not medical, legal or financial advice, and it is not a decision about your child. Program rules change. Confirm anything that matters with the Georgia Department of Community Health or with a GAPP participating agency before you rely on it.