CPOM Compliance for Georgia Healthcare Startups
Georgia is more flexible than California on classic CPOM, but O.C.G.A. § 14-7-4 still limits who may hold professional-corporation shares, and the Composite Medical Board still disciplines unprofessional conduct.
Get a Free CPOM AssessmentThe law in Georgia
Key authorities (official text)
Georgia Composite Medical Board · O.C.G.A. § 14-7-4 · O.C.G.A. § 43-34-8 · Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 360-3Georgia Composite Medical Board · 2021 General Statutes summary (Act 34 / HB 119 amends § 14-7-4) · Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 360-3 · Chapter 360-2 license requirements.
Georgia CPOM is Moderate. The state does not copy California Business & Professions Code § 2400. Official 2021 summary text of Act 34 / HB 119: the Act provides that chiropractors may own professional corporations with physicians to the extent not inconsistent with the ethics of the professions involved or otherwise prohibited by law, and it amends O.C.G.A. § 14-7-4, effective 29 April 2021. That is a licensed-professional share rule, not a digital-health waiver. Atlanta diligence still wants a physician-owned PC plus a fair-market-value MSA.
Do not cite the absence of a California-style standalone ban as permission for a lay operating company to practice medicine. O.C.G.A. § 14-7-4 is the Professional Corporation Act share rule. The 2021 amendment adds a chiropractor-with-physician co-ownership path. It does not add a lay-equity path. Confirm the current annotated text with counsel (Lexis publishes the official Code of Georgia).
The Composite Medical Board still licenses and disciplines physicians. Official Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 360-3 states the Board may deny, revoke, suspend, fine, reprimand, or otherwise limit a license for the grounds in O.C.G.A. § 43-34-8, and that unprofessional conduct includes failing minimum standards of practice. The same chapter says treatment and consultations must be done by Georgia-licensed practitioners, including when care is provided by electronic means. A medical-director title on a Delaware company does not satisfy that overlay.
Collaboration for NPs/PAs is a different job from owning the Professional Corporation. See collaborating physician vs physician PC owner.
Typical PC / MSO structure in Georgia
Form a Georgia professional corporation under Title 14 Chapter 7 owned by a Georgia-licensed MD or DO (with any chiropractor co-ownership only if counsel confirms it fits § 14-7-4 and the ethics of both professions). The MSO, often the Delaware operating company, provides non-clinical services under a written MSA at fair market value. Clinical revenue lands in the PC. Foundry forms that structure ($15,000) and matches a friendly PC owner ($3,000/mo). Not a rented Super PC. Not a reading of “no standalone CPOM statute” as a substitute for a named physician owner on a venture-backed file.
If you also treat South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, or North Carolina patients, Georgia’s Moderate label does not control those states. Start with the CPOM 50-state guide and form for the footprint you actually have. Neighboring South Carolina, Florida, and Tennessee have their own statutes.
When you still need a PC vs only an MSO
Use the table as an operator rule, not a filing opinion. Confirm with counsel.
| Georgia fact pattern | Typical entity | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Georgia-only, cash-pay, physician already owns the practice | May stay on the existing professional corporation | Still document clinical control and FMV admin if an MSO is in the picture |
| Venture-backed or multi-state telehealth that includes Atlanta / Savannah / Augusta | Georgia professional corporation + FMV MSA | Buyers and payers test CPOM compliance the same way they do in strict states |
| Physician-chiropractor joint professional corporation | May sit inside the 2021 § 14-7-4 amendment | Licensed-professional co-ownership only. A startup MSO is not that licensee |
| Georgia plus South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, or North Carolina | Form for the neighboring states you treat, then qualify Georgia | Georgia’s Moderate label does not soften S.C. Code § 40-47-30 or Florida Clinic Act rules |
Fee-splitting and funds-flow risk
Board Rule 360-3 is the unprofessional-conduct overlay. A percentage-of-collections management fee is the pattern that looks most like a split of professional fees and like de facto control. Prefer a fixed or FMV-supported admin fee. Pair Georgia CPOM with the fee-risk table on CPOM compliance.
| Georgia pattern | Risk | Safer pattern |
|---|---|---|
| Lay LLC holds itself out as practicing medicine | High: § 14-7-4 + Board 360-3 overlay | Licensed-physician ownership of the professional corporation |
| MSO paid % of professional collections | High: diligence + fee-split overlay | Fixed FMV admin fee with a memo |
| Cite “no standalone CPOM statute” as a startup waiver | Wrong read: share rule + board discipline still apply | Physician PC + FMV MSA for venture-backed and multi-state files |
| Lay equity in the professional corporation | High: § 14-7-4 | Licensed-professional ownership (physician, or physician-chiropractor if counsel confirms) |
| Physician PC + FMV MSA + separate books | Base case | Revisit FMV when volume changes |
Board vs buyer / payer checks
The Composite Medical Board disciplines licensees. Buyers and payers run a different file. Use both columns. License risk and diligence risk are not the same test. Full operating map: CPOM compliance.
| Who checks | What they sample | Georgia fail signal |
|---|---|---|
| Composite Medical Board | Unprofessional conduct (§ 43-34-8 / Rule 360-3); electronic care by a Georgia licensee | Figurehead PC owner; MSO writing protocols; unlicensed holding-out |
| Buyer diligence | Shareholder ledger vs Secretary of State; one claim from payer to PC bank to MSA invoice | MSO lockbox; percentage MSA; no Georgia-licensed owner |
| Payer / credentialing | Claim TIN and group NPI on the physician-owned PC | Marketing MSO TIN on the claim |
What Georgia founders need to know
- Georgia is Moderate, not “no CPOM.” § 14-7-4 is the share rule; Rule 360-3 is the discipline rule.
- The 2021 amendment lets chiropractors own a PC with physicians when ethics and other law allow it. It does not let a lay company own the practice of medicine.
- Electronic treatment still must be provided by a Georgia-licensed practitioner under Rule 360-3.
- Atlanta / Savannah health-tech diligence still asks who owns the PC, who bills, and how the MSA is priced.
- Foundry does not drop clients into a plug-in 50-state PC. Multi-state needs a 50-state licensed physician.
Operational checklist: CPOM compliance. Setup path: MSO-PC formation ($15,000). Full map: CPOM 50-state guide. Book a call from the homepage.
Georgia CPOM FAQ
Does Georgia have CPOM?
Georgia is Moderate / more flexible than California or New York. There is no B&P § 2400 analogue. O.C.G.A. § 14-7-4 and Board Rule 360-3 still expect licensed control of medicine and clean PC shares. Foundry keeps Georgia as Moderate on the CPOM 50-state guide.
Do I still need an MSO-PC in Georgia?
Yes for most venture-backed and multi-state models. The professional entity holds clinical care; the MSO is paid fair market value for non-clinical services.
Does the lack of a standalone CPOM statute let a lay LLC practice medicine?
No. § 14-7-4 is a share rule. Rule 360-3 still requires a Georgia-licensed practitioner for treatment, including electronic care.
Can a chiropractor own a Georgia medical PC with a physician?
The 2021 Act 34 / HB 119 summary says yes to the extent ethics and other law allow it. That is licensed-professional co-ownership, not lay equity.
How does Foundry help with Georgia CPOM?
MSO-PC formation is $15,000 one-time. A Georgia-licensed physician PC owner is $3,000/mo. Foundry is not a law firm.