Our Community Benefit

We know Georgians are counting on us to make a difference—both in the lives of kids and in the strength of our communities. In 2022, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta provided $301 million in community benefits, serving more than 444,000 children from all 159 counties in Georgia.

Medicaid’s impact on us

A reduction to the Medicaid budget means vital services would be at risk.

In 2022, we provided $196.2 million in care to families who could not cover the costs of their children’s care. Patients who received this care include the uninsured and children covered by Medicaid or PeachCare for Kids, for whom we are reimbursed less than what it costs to provide care.

Children comprise more than 40% of all Medicaid enrollees, but make up less than 20% of spending.

For every 1% reduction in Medicaid provider payments, Children’s is negatively impacted by approximately $6.7 million.

Increasing the number of families we assist

Nearly 60% of our patients in 2022 were on Medicaid, PeachCare for Kids or unable to cover the cost of their care. To allow more patients and their families to qualify for free or discounted care, Children’s made several updates to our Financial Assistance Policy, including:

• Expanded income eligibility, increased from 340% of Federal Poverty Guidelines to 600% of Federal Poverty Guidelines.
• Families with incomes up to 400% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines to receive a 100% discount with a sliding discount scale for families up to 600% of the Federal Policy Guidelines.

Our economic impact on Georgia

Children’s directly employs more than 13,000 people and serves patients from all 159 counties, making our impact on Georgia’s economy significant.

Children’s operates three hospitals, Marcus Autism Center, the Center for Advanced Pediatrics and numerous neighborhood locations and Urgent Care Centers.

In 2022, Children’s:

• Saw more than 444,000 unique patients.
• Managed more than 1,158,600 million patient visits.
• Performed more than 43,800 surgical procedures (inpatient and outpatient).

When kids need care, most parents turn to our Emergency Department, where we had more than 249,000 visits in 2022.

• We provide access to specialized hospital care and treatment at our two dedicated pediatric trauma centers – The Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center at Arthur M. Blank Hospital and the Level 2 Pediatric Trauma Center at Children’s Scottish Rite Hospital. Arthur M. Blank Hospital is the only Level 1 pediatric trauma center in the state.

Studies show children need specialists.

• Our freestanding hospitals and strategically located programs help treat kids with complex childhood illnesses and provide access to 2,300 pediatric physicians across more than 60 specialties.
• Children's Healthcare of Atlanta is ranked among the nation’s top pediatric hospitals for 2023-2024 on the U.S. News & World Report Best Children’s Hospitals list. Children's has 4 specialties ranked in the top 10 and 8 specialties ranked in the top 20.
• There are a limited number of board-certified pediatric physiatrists in the U.S., and we have five on staff.
• We have built a robust transportation network of ambulances and helicopters that function as mobile intensive care units, safely delivering kids in need of specialized care to our facilities. In 2022, our transportation network answered 3,900 calls, including 625 helicopter flights.

Children’s has a long history of advocating for children’s health in the community by providing education for families, providers, schools and other key stakeholders while raising community awareness about issues impacting the health of our children. Strong4Life is Children’s child advocacy and prevention arm, backed by Children’s doctors, nurses, therapists, dietitians and other wellness experts. Strong4Life helps parents and caregivers raise safe, healthy, resilient kids. The initiative focuses on obesity prevention, behavioral and mental health, injury and illness prevention, and child protection. In 2022, we committed $11.8 million to support children's wellness in Georgia, reaching $813,000 Georgia children and working with 825 schools and early care centers.

Children’s primary academic partner, Emory University School of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, ranked No. 1 nationally in NIH funding for pediatric departments in 2022. Our research program has maintained a top five ranking for NIH funding since 2016.