What background checks do I need on caregivers in Georgia?
Georgia’s long-term care background check law requires a fingerprint-based national check for owners and employees with routine personal contact with clients, plus registry checks. Licensed private home care agencies are covered. Waiver rules also tell agencies to screen every possible employee. Confirm the steps with DCH, because the process has changed.
Georgia passed a long-term care background check law in 2018 (effective October 1, 2019). A law firm summary says it covers private home care agencies, home health agencies, personal care homes, assisted living, hospice, nursing homes and adult day care facilities licensed by DCH.
Who is checked: owners who take part in running the business, and applicants and employees who have routine personal contact with clients or routine access to their financial information.
What is checked:
- A fingerprint-based national FBI check
- The Georgia nurse aide registry
- The state sex offender registry
- The federal list of excluded individuals and entities
- If the person has not lived in Georgia for two years, registry checks in the other states where they lived
- Professional license status, where one applies
You may not employ someone who shows up on a registry check or has an unsatisfactory result from DCH. Results are shown only as satisfactory or unsatisfactory.
Georgia’s waiver manual also says agencies must screen each possible employee for criminal background history, and consumer-directed workers must have a fingerprint-based check through GCHEXS.
A DCH family-employer FAQ shows a $51.50 fingerprint fee, but that is for family employers. Ask DCH what applies to your agency.
Sources
- Georgia Enacts New Background Check Legislation for Long-Term Care Providers (May 15, 2018) · Arnall Golden Gregory (law firm)
- Part I: EDWP (CCSP and SOURCE) General Services Policies and Procedures, Q3 July 2026 · Georgia Medicaid (GAMMIS)
- Georgia Caregiver Portal FAQ · Georgia DCH Office of Inspector General
- Private Home Care Program · Georgia DCH
Reviewed by Beth Bledsoe, Care Business Advisor®, 28 Oct 2026. Rules change. Confirm with your state Medicaid agency before you act.
How CareBravo®’s Compliance agent handles this
Want to see where this is costing your agency money? Four minutes, your agency’s name on the answer.