Visit the Official Unlock the Waiting List! website

Erika McGee is 13, but she has the cognitive capability of an infant. Her mother, Audrey, of Douglasville, Georgia, works as a substitute teacher to help make ends meet for the family of five, which is supported by her husband's job. For more than two years, the McGees have been on a waiting list for government services that would help provide funding for Erika's care, which would enable Audrey to get a full-time job. Until that happens, though, the family continues its day-to-day struggle.

Unfortunately, the McGees' situation is one facing thousands of individuals and families across Georgia. The waiting lists are composed by individuals like Erika, who have significant disabilities and require essential services to stay with their families and in their communities. The Georgia Department of Health Resources and the Department of Community Health keep the list, which totals close to 6,000 individuals. The list is estimated to grow by approximately 700 people per year as students with developmental disabilities age out of the state's school system. The current wait for services is estimated up to 10 years.

The waiting list is an issue with a much wider scope than individuals with disabilities and their families — it has a tremendous impact on every Georgia taxpayer by keeping individuals in costly state-run institutions. According to the Georgia Department of Medical Assistance, using home and community-based services instead of institutional services saved a total of $110 million to taxpayers in 1997.

AADD plays a key role in the initiative to secure funding to move individuals off the waiting list through its involvement with the Unlock the Waiting Lists! Campaign. (link)

The campaign is a targeted effort of nonprofit organizations assigned to educate the public and ensure funding for the needs of individuals on the list. The Campaign's mission is to reduce or eliminate waiting lists for thousands of people with disabilities, the frail elderly, and their families, who need home and community-based services.

This year, developments during the Legislative Session suggest reason for concern. As of February, 2008, the State Budget recommends just 500 new services for the Mental Retardation Waiver Program (MRWP) and 150 new slots for the Independent Care Waiver Program (ICWP). This is a fraction of the services provided in budgets for 2007 and 2008, and needs to motivate Unlock the Waiting List! Campaign members and current and past Partners in Policymaking classes to write their legislators today, urging legislators to reconsider the Governor’s budget proposal.
Much work lies ahead. AADD's Public Policy division has an unwavering commitment to advance the Unlock initiatives to ensure that all Georgians have the services and supports necessary to lead fulfilling, healthy lives.