From left, Randy, Tyler and Debbie Legg share a moment together at Tuesday's Birdie Thornton luncheon.

When Tyler Legg first visited the Birdie Thornton Center nine years ago, he loved everything about it. His mother Debbie, who was all too familiar with how slow government-funded programs could be, immediately called the mental health department in Athens to secure her son’s place on the center’s waiting list.

In 2014, Tyler graduated from East Limestone High School at the age of 22 and was excited to start a new chapter in his life at the Birdie Thornton Center. Debbie and her husband Randy were shocked to learn that he was still number 2,700 on a statewide waiting list, which only places an estimated 300 intellectually disabled individuals in facilities like Birdie Thornton each year.

According to Medicaidwaiver.org, 3,043 people are currently on the state’s waiting list. This includes both those with Intellectual Disability and Living at Home waivers.

An individual’s place on the list is determined by date of application and on the applicant’s critical need status. Theoretically, a person can move up the list if their situation deteriorates. Numbers also shift when someone dies or moves in or out of the state.

Program Director Kristy Allen says the center has room for 80 individuals, but currently they only have 49 enrolled. Last year, they did not receive any individuals off of the state list.

The problem, according to Limestone County ARC President Thomas Saint, boils down to funding.

“The state has limited the money that can be used for Medicaid waivers,” he said. “Used to, it didn’t matter how many Medicaid waivers came up, they placed people according to their need, not by the funds available.”

State funding for mental health did not see an increase in 2017, which is an issue, because state dollars are matched by federal ones.

“With over 3,000 people on the waiting list, it is so backed up that people will be on it until they die,” Saint said.

Legg is not about to let that happen to her son, who was diagnosed with Fragile X syndrome when he was 15 months old.

Over the last three years, she has drafted a total of five letters to various state officials, including District 5 State Representative Danny Crawford, and has managed to get Tyler moved up from number 2700 to 421. But she won’t stop writing until he is given a full-time slot at Birdie Thornton. Her next letter will be aimed at Gov. Kay Ivey.

“I hate to just see him sit around at home,” she said. “He needs to be all he can be and learn all he can, and this center can provide that for him.”

“He thrives when he is around his peers, because I think they understand him,” she added.

Recently, the family took a desperate step and decided to enroll him one day a week on a self-pay basis. However, the fee has to come out of Tyler’s meager Social Security check, because he has a Medicaid waiver.

“Even if someone wanted to help us, we couldn’t accept it, because it would be considered income and that would affect his benefits,” Legg said.

“It is just sad to see so many people right here in our backyard stuck on this waiting list, and there is nothing we can do about it until the state gives their approval,” Allen said. “Before the state stepped in, we were able to accept a lot more people.”