The Georgia Suicide Prevention Plan provides a framework for getting everyone in Georgia involved in preventing suicide.

The Plan has its origins in the work of The Suicide Prevention Action Network (SPAN USA), a nonprofit organization founded in Marietta, Georgia by the family of Terri Ann Weyrauch, MD, as a result of Terri's 1987 suicide.

This national grassroots organization, which was officially launched in 1996, brought the concept of "political will" into suicide prevention. As a result of their national success, SPAN USA formed a partnership with a number of Georgia public and private organizations in 1999 to do something about the problem of suicide in Georgia.

Responding to their plea for help, Governor Roy Barnes and the Georgia Legislature provided funding in the Fiscal Year 2001 Georgia State Budget for SPAN USA to develop the Georgia Suicide Prevention Plan. Since then, many Georgians representing different fields and backgrounds have participated in the Plan's development.

The National Mental Health Association of Georgia (NMHAG) and the Georgia Department of Human Resources Division of Public Health have been key organizational partners.