ATLANTA — For several months, physical therapists, or PTs, across Georgia have been reporting issues with Georgia's new license renewal and registration system called GOALS.
PTs are just one profession of dozens required to use this system to renew or register their license to be able to work, but they say the system is full of bugs. The Secretary of State's Office has extended the renewal deadline for this group twice following complaints, with the most recent deadline being moved to February 16.
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On Tuesday, hundreds of PTs and PT students from across Georgia gathered on Georgia State's campus Tuesday before meeting with their local legislatures for Physical Therapist Day at the Georgia Capitol.
The topic that dominated much of the conversation surrounded issues with GOALS.
Even first-year PT students in attendance at the event, who are years away from getting their license, expressed concern that “it takes away from the patients.”
In a field already impacted by shortages, some PTs like Daniel Dale, who is also a clinical professor, worry it will worsen things.
"Waiting on licensure and waiting for an opportunity to pay off those student loans has been immensely stressful, and that’s the portion that I’m worried about impacting the profession," explained Dale.
Physical therapist Stephen Clark, who works for a telehealth-style practice operating in dozens of states, says he still hasn't been able to get his license renewed and is concerned about what this means for his hundreds of patients across the country.
“I’ve been licensed in the state of Georgia for 10 years and hold a bunch of other licenses in other states and an additional 16 licenses that are based on my license in my home state here in Georgia," said Clark.
According to the Secretary of State's office, 86% of those who can renew have been processed. Secretary Brad Raffensberger previously shared that his office was working to add more staffing to the licensing division this year.