§ 19-3-40.Blood test for sickle cell disease; information to be provided
Chapter 3. Marriage Generally · Article 2. License and Ceremony · Last amended 2011 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-3-40
Plain-English Summary
This section doesn’t make a sickle cell test a condition of marrying. It takes the route of education. It defines a “blood test for sickle cell disease” as a blood test for sickle cell anemia, sickle cell trait and other detectable abnormal hemoglobin, and then tells the Department of Public Health to prepare information about it.
The department’s information, posted on its website, must describe the importance of the test and explain the causes and effects of the disease. It must also recommend that each person applying for a marriage license get the blood test before obtaining the license. The department may also provide the information as a brochure or other document. It shall make the information available in electronic format to the probate courts, and the probate courts shall pass it along to all persons applying for marriage licenses.
So the duties run in a chain: the department writes and posts; the probate courts distribute; the applicants decide. The department and the courts act under “shall,” but the test itself is only a recommendation. The section dates from 2009 and was amended in 2011. It sits with the other information duties tied to the license, including the AIDS and HIV brochure under § 19-3-35.1 and the marriage manual under § 19-3-41.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a sickle cell test to get married in Georgia?
No. This section recommends the test; it doesn’t require it. The Department of Public Health’s information must recommend that each applicant get a blood test for sickle cell disease before obtaining a marriage license, and the probate court must give that information to every applicant. Whether to be tested is up to you.
What does the sickle cell blood test check for?
Under the section’s definition, a blood test for sickle cell disease means a test for sickle cell anemia, sickle cell trait and other detectable abnormal hemoglobin. So the test looks for the trait as well as the disease. The state’s information explains the causes and effects of the disease and why the test matters.
Where can I find Georgia’s sickle cell information for marriage applicants?
On the Department of Public Health’s website. The section requires the department to post the information there and to make it available electronically to the probate courts, which must give it to every person applying for a marriage license. The department may also provide it as a brochure or other document, so your probate court may hand you a printed copy.
Why does Georgia give out sickle cell information with marriage licenses?
The statute requires the information to describe the importance of a blood test for sickle cell disease and to explain the causes and effects of the disease. Handing it out at the marriage license stage reaches couples before they marry, and the information must recommend testing before the license is obtained.
Who has to give marriage license applicants the sickle cell information?
The probate courts. The Department of Public Health prepares the information and makes it available to the probate courts in electronic format, and the probate courts shall disseminate it to all persons applying for marriage licenses. The duty is mandatory for the courts, but the test itself remains a recommendation.
Amendment History
Laws 2009, Act 77, § 1, eff. July 1, 2009; Laws 2011, Act 244, § 6-3, eff. July 1, 2011.