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What GAPP covers

Two different services, decided by two different standards, and the distinction matters more than most families are told.

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Two kinds of care

GAPP covers two distinct services, and knowing which one your child is approved for explains almost everything else about your case.

Skilled nursingDelivered by a licensed RN or LPN. Trach and vent care, suctioning, tube feeding, medication administration, seizure management, assessment and monitoring. This is for children whose care requires clinical judgement.

Personal care supportDelivered by a trained CNA or personal support worker. Bathing, dressing, feeding, transfers, positioning, and help with daily activities. This is hands-on support, not clinical care.

A child may be approved for one, or both, depending on what the physician documents and what Medicaid authorizes.

What it costs your family

Nothing. For children approved through Georgia Medicaid there is no out-of-pocket cost, no copay and no deductible for GAPP services. The care is paid for by Medicaid.

How the hours are decided

Hours come from the plan of treatment your child's physician signs. Georgia Medicaid reviews that plan and authorizes a number of hours per week. Neither you nor your agency sets that number.

Be careful with any agency that promises a specific number of hours before your case is reviewed. Nobody can promise that, because nobody but Medicaid decides it. An agency that tells you otherwise is either guessing or selling.

What GAPP does not cover

Hours delivered at school. The school setting is excluded, because it overlaps with what the school is responsible for under an IEP. Your child can attend school; GAPP hours are scheduled around it.
Time your child is an inpatient. Hours pause during a hospital admission and resume when your child is home.
Care delivered outside Georgia. Hours do not travel with you across the state line.
Respite as a standalone service. GAPP is care for the child, not a babysitting benefit, though the practical effect on an exhausted family is real.

Getting more hours

If your child's condition changes, the route to more hours starts with the physician, not the agency. Tell us and tell the doctor. We help get updated documentation submitted, and Georgia Medicaid decides.

Ready when you are.

Tell us about your child and a real person will walk you through what comes next. No cost, no obligation.

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HeartPath Home Care is an approved provider for the Georgia Pediatric Program. We are not a government agency, and this page is not an official publication of the Georgia Department of Community Health or Georgia Medicaid. It is a plain-language guide for families. Eligibility for GAPP, Medicaid and Katie Beckett is determined solely by Georgia Medicaid and the state agencies that administer them, based on your child's documented medical needs. Program rules and figures change.