ATLANTA (AP) — Legislation that would allow Georgians to purchase insurance across state lines has cleared the Senate.

Supporters contend the bill would lower insurance costs by introducing more competition. Opponents say it would allow for watered-down policies that don't require coverage for crucial procedures that Georgia policies mandate.

The Senate approved the bill 37-17 on Tuesday after more than two hours of debate on 20 amendments. Republicans have fought to pass the bill for years, usually over the opposition of women legislators, who routinely express concern that such a measure would dial back hard-fought gains from Georgia insurance carriers.

Complete your profile to continue reading and get FREE access to BenefitsPRO, part of your ALM digital membership.

Your access to unlimited BenefitsPRO content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:

  • Breaking benefits news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.