From Maternity Wards to Voting Booths, a Generation's Future Is on the Ballot. Plus: The scholarship 25 years overdue, and Ossoff's bipartisan fight for Georgia's kids

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Georgia’s War on Mothers

Georgia is in the midst of a major election year, with control of state government up for grabs this November. The choices voters make will shape healthcare policy for years to come. Maternal healthcare is one of the clearest examples of why. It touches families in every part of the state, and it hits rural Georgia hardest of all. Today, only 36% of Georgia’s rural hospitals still offer labor and delivery services.

As more and more maternity wards close, the effects aren't just limited to a hospital building. They ripple through families, children, and entire communities. Rural Georgia is experiencing exactly that as growing gaps in maternal healthcare are forcing mothers to travel farther for care and creating new risks during one of the most important moments in a family's life.

The challenges facing maternal healthcare in Georgia are not new, but they have become impossible to ignore. More than one-third of Georgia counties are considered maternity care deserts, meaning they lack hospitals offering obstetric care or maternity healthcare providers. The burden falls especially hard on rural communities. Nearly 16% of women in Georgia live more than 30 minutes from the nearest birthing hospital, a rate significantly higher than the national average. In some rural areas, women may travel more than an hour to reach maternity services. What might seem like a minor inconvenience quickly becomes a serious challenge when appointments become weekly, complications arise, or labor begins earlier than anticipated. For many families, healthcare decisions become financial decisions, forcing parents to weigh the cost of transportation, childcare, and missed work against necessary medical care.

The consequences extend far beyond the delivery room. Research consistently shows that rural communities experience higher rates of maternal mortality, infant mortality, and pregnancy-related complications. Hospital closures, provider shortages, and limited access to specialized care have left many communities without the support systems needed to ensure healthy pregnancies. These challenges disproportionately affect low-income families and communities of color. Black women in Georgia continue to face significantly higher risks of maternal mortality, showing how race, income, and geography intersect to create barriers to care.

Despite these challenges, Georgia has begun taking steps to improve maternal healthcare access. State lawmakers expanded postpartum Medicaid coverage, allowing many mothers to receive healthcare beyond the previous 60-day coverage window. Georgia has also invested in telehealth initiatives through the Healthy Babies Act, aiming to connect expectant mothers with remote monitoring and prenatal support services. These programs recognize an important reality that when healthcare providers cannot always come closer to patients, technology can help bridge the gap. While telehealth cannot replace every in-person visit, it has become an increasingly important tool for improving access in rural communities.

For families seeking assistance, here are resources you can turn to: 

• South Georgia Healthy Start offers support for expectant and postpartum mothers, fathers, and young children in participating counties. 

• Local health departments across Georgia provide prenatal services, health screenings, and referrals to specialized care. 

• The Georgia Department of Public Health's Healthy Pregnancy Program offers case management and support for high-risk pregnancies.

• Programs connected to Wellstar's Rural Healthcare Access Partnership can also help families connect with doulas, educational resources, and care coordination services specifically for rural communities.

Maternal healthcare is about more than statistics and policy debates. Behind every number is a mother preparing to welcome a child. The progress being made across Georgia is encouraging, but challenges remain. As policymakers, healthcare providers, and community leaders continue working to expand access, one thing should remain at the center of the conversation, especially as we head into November, and it is this: every Georgia mother deserves quality healthcare, regardless of her ZIP code.

Collusion of Powers: The President’s Court

This term, the Supreme Court handed down a string of decisions that will shape American life for years. Most split the Court's conservative and liberal justices along familiar lines, and most moved power in the same direction: toward the presidency and away from the checks that used to constrain it. 

The Court’s lurch to the right continues, and while birthright citizenship survived (barely), almost everything else reinforced the need for court reform of some kind.

The decision in Trump v. Barabara has been in the public eye and has garnered major media coverage. In the decision, the Supreme Court, acknowledging the plain text of the Constitution, ruled Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship to be unconstitutional. This decision was a rare instance of conflict between the President and the Supreme Court, as President Trump repeatedly voiced his displeasure with the ruling. However, this ruling should be alarming, not reassuring. The decision was 6-3, but only five justices affirmed birthright citizenship as constitutional. Justice Kavanaugh sided with the majority on narrower, statutory grounds, meaning the Court was one vote away from a decision that legal commentators compared to Dred Scott. 

The fact that ending birthright citizenship was ever a live question at the Supreme Court says everything about where the Court is headed. 

While most media coverage of the Supreme Court’s recent rulings addressed Trump v. Barbara, many less-discussed rulings pose major implications.

One of the most significant decisions released by the Court concerns campaign finance. Given the Court’s recent history of dismantling campaign finance regulations, it came as no surprise that in National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission, the Court removed all federal limits on the amount of money that political parties can spend in direct coordination with candidates for federal office. 

If an individual chooses to donate to a political party, they are permitted to send $3,500. But now, thanks to the Supreme Court’s recent ruling, this massive sum of money can be sent from the party directly to an individual candidate, allowing for campaign finance restrictions to be bypassed.

Mullin v Doe: In a 6-3 decision, the Court gave the Trump administration a green light to remove Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian and Syrian nationals. Trump has demonized Haitian immigrants since the 2024 presidential campaign, when he spread a baseless and widely debunked claim about them. This ruling immediately puts the immigration status of over 350,000 people at risk. The fate of the remaining one million TPS holders is now more uncertain than ever. 

Trump v Cook and Trump v Slaughter: Two of the Court's cases, Trump v. Cook & Trump v. Slaughter, asked the same question: Can Trump fire members of independent agencies? Trump v. Slaughter said yes, while the ruling in Trump v. Cook prevented the President from firing members of the Federal Reserve. Humphrey's Executor v. United States, the 90-year-old case that affirmed the independence of these members, has now been gutted. The President can now fire the heads of independent watchdogs like the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and the National Labor Relations Board, agencies Congress built specifically to be shielded from political pressure, for any reason at all, and replace them with loyalists who will do his bidding.

West Virginia v. B.P.J.: States are now free to ban transgender athletes from women's sports teams. The decision opens the door for states to bar participation even if it goes against the policies of a sport's governing bodies. For instance, a state's athletic association might get overruled if it decided to allow transgender women to compete in track and field against cisgender women, even if the sport's own governing body permitted it. It could prevent transgender women from competing in school-sanctioned intramural sports. Ultimately, it takes away the decision-making from the experts and prevents transgender women from reaping the benefits of being on a team and competing in a sport. 

Youth Voters Under Economic Strain

Politics and economics are no longer separate issues. The rising cost of rent, groceries, healthcare, and education has transformed economic struggles into political ones. When affording a home feels impossible, student debt continues to grow, and financial security feels increasingly out of reach, trust in the institutions responsible for addressing those challenges begins to erode. Young Americans are not only questioning their economic future, but they are also questioning whether the government is capable of improving it.

Recent polling shows nearly half of young Americans report struggling financially, while inflation, housing costs, and healthcare remain among their top concerns. As wages fail to keep pace with rising expenses, many young adults are delaying milestones such as homeownership, marriage, and starting families.

These financial pressures shape more than personal budgets; they influence how young people engage with democracy itself. Research from Tufts University's Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement found that young people facing financial hardship are less likely to vote, participate in civic life, or believe that their voices matter in government. When daily life becomes focused on affording rent, paying medical bills, or managing student debt, civic participation can feel like a luxury rather than a responsibility.

The consequences of this go beyond voter turnout. The latest Harvard Youth Poll found that only 13% of young Americans believe the country is headed in the right direction. Just 26% say they feel hopeful about America's future, a dramatic decline from levels recorded only a few years ago. At the same time, 50% of young people say that people like them have little or no influence over what the government does. These numbers point to a generation that is not simply frustrated by economic conditions, but increasingly skeptical that the political system is capable of addressing them.

That skepticism is reflected in declining trust in public institutions. The Harvard Youth Poll found that trust in the federal government has fallen to just 15%, the lowest level recorded in the survey's history. Only one-third of young Americans say they trust that elections will be conducted fairly. When financial insecurity is paired with a growing sense of political powerlessness, it becomes harder for young people to believe that participation will lead to meaningful change.

This growing disconnect should concern anyone invested in the future of American democracy. As young Americans lose faith in their economic future, they often lose faith in the political system alongside it. The American Dream was once built on the belief that each generation would have greater opportunities than the one before it. Today, many young Americans are struggling to see that path for themselves.

Yet distrust hasn't translated into disengagement, at least not yet. In the last two midterm elections, the ones most comparable to what's ahead in November, young voters turned out at the highest rate in decades: 2018 set a modern record, and 2022 came in as the second-highest in 30 years. The instinct to show up hasn't disappeared. What's cracking is the belief that showing up changes anything. 

Rebuilding that belief will take more than encouraging participation. AI reshaping entry-level jobs, a first home that feels further away every year, student loan debt that never seems to shrink, these are the issues shaping young people's daily lives, and they deserve to be at the center of the conversation, not an afterthought raised only when it's time to get out the vote. Speaking to what young people are actually facing, and listening when they answer, has to be central to any campaign looking to win in November.

Behind the Scenes: Ossoff's Bipartisan Fight for Georgia's Kids 

Atlanta has long ranked among the 14 U.S. cities with the highest rates of child trafficking, according to the FBI. It's one of the most devastating crimes occurring in our communities.

Senator Ossoff has made confronting child trafficking a defining piece of his work in the Senate, building bipartisan coalitions to strengthen protections for Georgia's children and hold predators accountable. Whether it’s fighting for veterans, farmers, or Georgia’s children, Ossoff has made solving problems, not chasing headlines, his focus in the United States Senate.

Recently, Ossoff joined a bipartisan coalition supporting the Ending Coercion of Children and Harm Online (ECCHO) Act, legislation that would make it a federal crime to coerce a child online into harming themselves or others. The bill would require these crimes to be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) CyberTipline, which would help investigators identify offenders more quickly and intervene before more children are harmed.

"Nothing matters more than the safety and wellbeing of children, and we must protect every child in Georgia from exploitation and abuse," says Senator Ossoff. "That is why I am working to pass this bipartisan legislation to make sure that law enforcement can prosecute criminals targeting children."

Earlier in 2025, Senators Ossoff and Grassley authored the Preventing Child Trafficking Act, legislation that strengthened coordination between the U.S. Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services to better prevent child trafficking and protect vulnerable youth. 

In addition to this, Ossoff has also co-sponsored the Runaway and Homeless Youth and Trafficking Prevention Act, the Strengthening Child Exploitation Enforcement Act, and the REPORT Act. These pieces of legislation respectively expand support for runaway and homeless youth, make prosecuting child exploitation cases easier to prosecute, and require social media platforms and websites to report suspected child trafficking and enticement.

These bipartisan efforts reflect Senator Ossoff's commitment to equipping law enforcement with stronger resources, improving protection for vulnerable youth, and ensuring that child predators are held accountable. Atlanta's place on that FBI list isn't just a statistic; it's a call to action for every Georgian, regardless of party, to keep pushing until that ranking is history. 

DREAMS of Georgia’s Students: 25 Years Overdue

On top of new laws that hit the books July 1st, this year's legislative session reshaped two very different parts of student life for young Georgians: what the day looks like for K-12 Georgia students, and how college students pay tuition.

The primary classrooms in Georgia are changing. Last year, Georgia banned personal devices, phones, tablets, and smartwatches in elementary and middle schools, bell to bell. This spring, Kemp signed a bill extending that ban to high schools statewide, effective by the 2027-28 school year.

Supporters point to strong teacher backing, arguing it cuts distractions and discipline problems. But the debate split lawmakers. One state senator argued that treating a 17-year-old like a second grader ignores that many older teens already juggle jobs or even kids of their own. Safety advocates raised a separate concern that cutting off phone access could matter in an actual emergency, a worry with extra weight after the Apalachee High School shooting last year. The law carves out exceptions for medical needs and emergencies, and districts get some flexibility in enforcement.

For decades, Georgia's signature scholarship has been HOPE, merit-based and rewarding GPA rather than financial need. That's left a real gap: strong students from low-income families could have HOPE and a maxed-out Pell Grant and still not have enough to finish school. Until this year, Georgia was one of only two states in the country, along with New Hampshire, without a need-based college aid program.

Governor Kemp proposed the DREAMS Scholarship, Georgia's first need-based college aid program, in his January State of the State. It nearly didn't survive intact. The House cut $25 million, and the Senate cut $200 million, leaving just $100 million before Kemp came back with a revised revenue estimate and lawmakers restored the full $325 million. Of that, $300 million builds a long-term endowment, while $25 million is available immediately this fall.

To qualify, students must be Georgia residents with demonstrated financial need after other aid is factored in and working or volunteering at least part-time. Eligible students can get up to $3,000 a year for up to eight semesters, which could be the difference between finishing a degree and dropping out. It's meant to work alongside HOPE, not replace it. Students should watch their school's financial aid office and FAFSA deadlines this fall.

For young Georgians, both changes are critical: real investment in affording college, and real questions about how much the state should control the day-to-day of getting through it.

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