The Georgia Composite Medical Board is the state agency responsible for licensing and regulating physicians, physician assistants, advanced practice registered nurses, and a range of other healthcare professionals practicing in Georgia. Established under O.C.G.A. § 43-34-1, its mission is to protect the health of Georgians through proper licensure and enforcement of the Medical Practice Act. That mission spans everything from reviewing new license applications to setting standards of care and, when necessary, disciplining licensees who fall short of those standards.

To carry out this work, the agency is organized into several core units. The Licensing Division reviews and processes applications for the professionals under its authority. The Compliance Division monitors licensees to ensure ongoing adherence to the Board’s rules and requirements. The Legal Division guides cases through formal proceedings and advises the Board on regulatory matters. And the Investigations Division examines complaints and allegations against licensees, providing the factual groundwork the Board relies on to make its decisions.

That last group is where much of the public safety work plays out. When a concern is raised about a licensee, it is the Investigations Division that steps in to determine what happened and what should be done about it.

Every complaint begins with a jurisdictional review, confirming whether the matter falls within the Board’s statutory authority before the case moves forward. If it does, the case moves into a formal investigation. Allegations can span a wide range of issues, including sexual misconduct, overprescribing, unlicensed practice, quality of care concerns, impairment, fraud, and criminal convictions.

From there, the work looks familiar to anyone who has built a case file. Special Agents gather medical records, interview witnesses, subpoena documents when necessary, and request a response from the licensee. Once the fact finding is complete, findings are presented to the Board. As the governing authority under Georgia law, the Board determines whether a violation occurred and what disciplinary action is warranted, ranging from a consent order to suspension or revocation.

What sets this division apart from a typical regulatory office is who is doing the investigating. The Board employs Georgia POST certified Special Agents, professionals who bring law enforcement backgrounds and training to their casework. When an investigation surfaces criminal conduct, these Special Agents can pursue charges directly rather than handing the matter off, and they work closely with local, state, and federal law enforcement partners when cases cross jurisdictional lines.

“Our responsibility is to conduct thorough, objective investigations grounded in evidence and due process,” said Cameron Rabbitt, Director of Investigations. “Protecting patients and ensuring fairness to licensed professionals are both essential to maintaining public trust.”

For Georgia’s law enforcement community, that overlap is worth knowing about. A POST certified Special Agent inside a licensing board is one more set of trained eyes working to keep bad actors out of exam rooms, and one more partner ready to support local agencies when a medical case turns criminal. It is a meaningful extension of the same mission police departments carry every day: keeping Georgia communities safe.

To learn more about the Georgia Composite Medical Board and its Investigations Division, visit medicalboard.georgia.gov.