State officials dig in to launch center for Georgians with disabilities who are in crisis

Construction will begin in the coming weeks for a center in downtown Macon for people with developmental disabilities who are also experiencing behavioral health challenges. A ceremonial groundbreaking was held Wednesday. (Jill Nolin/Georgia Recorder)

Work will soon begin on a new center in Macon that will focus exclusively on serving adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities who also have behavioral health challenges.

The center, which is set to open in early 2025, will treat people with disabilities from all over the state who might otherwise end up at local hospitals with no place else to go. But it will also provide outpatient care for locals.

“We have a gap right now where we have individuals – on average about 21 people every single day – stuck in an emergency room in Georgia with a developmental disability, and that’s not the proper place for them,” Kevin Tanner, commissioner of the state Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, told reporters after a ceremonial groundbreaking held Wednesday.