Letter from Leadership: Urgently Needed! 1,217 New Waivers

Rena Harris, GCDD Chief Program OfficerFor the past two and a half years, the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) has had the privilege of working alongside leaders across Georgia’s intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) community as part of the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD) I/DD Workgroup. Together, we set out to confront three of the most critical challenges in our system: the provider workforce crisis, people stranded in emergency rooms and hospitals, and the long and growing waiting list for the NOW and COMP waivers.

As conditions worsened, the workgroup narrowed its focus to the waiting list, a symptom of devaluation and chronic underfunding despite Georgia’s healthy coffers. For nearly a year, we analyzed data, redesigned the assessment process, and developed expanded urgency criteria to ensure that limited resources reach those in the greatest danger first.

Using its own data, DBHDD staff identified the number of Georgians with the most urgent needs. Based on that analysis, the GCDD planned a unified request with DBHDD and the Service Provider’s Association for Developmental Disabilities (SPADD) for 1,217 new waiver slots, along with 26 additional DBHDD staff needed to process and implement them.

Unfortunately, as of this writing in late January 2026, DBHDD has requested funding for only 100 new waivers.

GCDD cannot accept that outcome.

We are moving forward together with SPADD to call for the full 1,217 waivers that are urgently needed for people living in institutions, people whose caregivers are over the age of 60, people stuck in jails and hospitals, people at risk of homelessness, and young adults at risk of “graduating” from school directly to a couch with no services.

There are 1,217 people waiting for the most basic supports to live safely in their communities.

We cannot, in good conscience, ask them to wait one more day.

If you or your loved one is on the waiting list and is over 22 years old, please share your story with us to help us show Georgia’s leaders why 1217 new waivers are urgently needed. Complete a quick survey to share your story today.