This is a press release from the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.
The Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD) has opened its latest “Operation New Hope” unit at the West Central Georgia Regional Hospital in Columbus. The facility is designed to help individuals transition from forensic units back into the community, reducing the number of people waiting in local jails for competency restoration services at state psychiatric hospitals.
“The expansion of Operation New Hope on our Columbus campus marks an important milestone for Georgia’s forensic behavioral health system,” said DBHDD Commissioner Kevin Tanner. “We’re already seeing promising results as individuals gain the vocational and life skills needed to demonstrate readiness for community reintegration. Just as importantly, every Operation New Hope bed we bring online frees up critical hospital capacity for individuals waiting in jails. This program reflects our commitment to improving outcomes for patients while strengthening the entire continuum of care.”
DBHDD’s Operation New Hope program offers therapeutic services that address each resident’s unique needs and challenges, helping them reintegrate into the community with dignity and stability. Ahead of the ceremony, the hospital was able to admit its first round of 10 participants and is currently working to fill all 30 beds. The support of Governor Brian Kemp and the Georgia General Assembly’s allocation of $1.6 million for Fiscal Year 2026 has been instrumental in making this facility possible.
The Department’s Forensic Services is experiencing delays in admitting individuals to state hospitals due, in part, to increased demand for inpatient treatment. As of February 2025, approximately 800 individuals are waiting in jail to receive hospital-based court-ordered restoration services. The state currently has approximately 670 hospital beds dedicated to Forensic Services, which provides mental health services to individuals who are incompetent to stand trial (IST) or not guilty by reason of insanity (NGRI).
To address the backlog, DBHDD leadership has prioritized converting under-utilized hospital buildings into additional forensic capacity, bringing nearly 100 beds online in two years. This includes the first two Operation New Hope sites in Savannah (30 beds) and Milledgeville (17 beds). Program outcomes include one Milledgeville participant who transitioned to a Community Integration Home after more than 27 years in the state’s hospital system. In 2025, Operation New Hope sites served 43 individuals and discharged five into community programs, freeing inpatient beds for others awaiting placement across two campuses.
DBHDD aims to honor the late Speaker of the House David Ralston and his legacy of transformative mental health reform. The facility features a mural capturing Speaker Ralston’s powerful words, “Today, hope won,” spoken during the passage of the 2022 landmark Georgia Mental Health Parity Act (House Bill 1013). Sheree Ralston, mental health champion and wife of the late Speaker, joined Commissioner Tanner at the facility’s ribbon cutting ceremony on Wednesday, February 25, 2026. Guests were able to tour the hospital building, which was renovated into apartment-style “pods.”
*Editor’s Note: A photo from the Operation New Hope ribbon cutting ceremony is attached.
