Georgia - December 2025

On 9 December, Parliament adopted a legislative package amending 15 laws which authorize the Health Ministry to establish a database of all people with diagnosed psychiatric conditions, including alcoholism and drug addiction. Authorities and private third parties will be able to access information in the database with the patient’s consent or a court order. Government spokespeople said the changes were necessary to ensure that laws preventing people with certain mental illnesses from obtaining firearms or driver’s licenses could be effectively enforced. The database does not appear to serve any diagnostic, therapeutic or public health purpose. Critics are concerned that the database creates an unacceptably high risk for discrimination, could be used as a tool for repression, violates patient confidentiality and will discourage citizens from seeking mental health care to avoid appearing in the database. The government dismissed these concerns as ‘speculation’.

Sources: Civil Georgia, OC Media, Parliament of Georgia