What Is Medical Payments (Med Pay) Coverage in Georgia?
Short answer: Medical payments coverage, or med pay, is optional coverage on your own auto policy that pays reasonable and necessary medical and funeral expenses from a crash, regardless of who was at fault. Limits are often modest, but it pays quickly and can help with deductibles and copays while your injury claim is pending.
Definition
Georgia law describes med pay as coverage that reimburses the insured and others for reasonable and necessary medical and funeral expenses from a motor vehicle accident, without regard to the insured’s fault (O.C.G.A. § 33-34-2). Georgia does not require personal injury protection (PIP), so med pay is the closest thing most Georgia drivers have to no-fault medical coverage.
How it works in Georgia
- Optional: you choose whether to buy it and at what limit.
- Who it covers: depending on the policy, it can cover you, household family members and passengers in your car.
- Repayment: your insurer may ask to be repaid from your settlement. Georgia’s made-whole statute limits reimbursement for many benefit providers until you are fully compensated and reduces it by a share of attorney’s fees (O.C.G.A. § 33-24-56.1).
- UM offsets: your UM coverage may exclude amounts med pay already paid for the same expenses (O.C.G.A. § 33-7-11(i)).
- 2025 changes: for claims arising on or after April 21, 2025, a new law changes what a jury may hear about medical bills and insurance payments (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-1.1).
Example
You are hurt in a crash on GA-400, and your health plan has a $3,000 deductible. Your auto policy includes $5,000 in med pay. You send your ER and follow-up bills to your own insurer, and med pay covers them while your claim against the at-fault driver continues.
Why it matters for your claim
- It helps with bills during the months a liability claim can take.
- It pays even if you were partly at fault or the other driver has no insurance.
- A reimbursement request against your settlement should be checked before you settle.
Read more: Who pays your medical bills while your Georgia injury case is pending?.
Related terms
Frequently Asked Questions
Is med pay required in Georgia?
No. Georgia requires liability coverage and requires UM coverage unless you reject it in writing, but med pay is optional.
Does med pay reduce what the at-fault driver owes me?
Traditionally, Georgia’s collateral source rule kept the at-fault driver from getting credit for benefits from your own insurance. For claims arising on or after April 21, 2025, SB 68 changed how medical expenses are proven, so ask how that applies to your case.
Browse the full Georgia personal injury glossary
Questions about how this applies to your accident? Call 888-BIG-GUNN or request a free case review. There is no fee unless we recover for you.
This is general information about Georgia law, not legal advice for your situation.
