'Be Well Texas' is expanding its recovery services thanks to a multi-million dollar grant.
To watch the full KENS-TV interview, click here.
Young adults with substance use disorders in Texas will now have an easier path to recovery housing services thanks to vouchers funded by a $3.4 million grant awarded to Be Well Texas, a UT Health San Antonio program.
The 3-year grant from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission will be used to subsidize part of the cost of level 2 and 3 recovery housing services from 16 providers operating 44 homes around the state, including four homes in San Antonio. Those 44 homes contain beds for 440 individuals dealing with substance use disorders.
The recovery levels are established by the National Alliance for Recovery Houses, a nonprofit, where level 1 is the lowest level of care and level 4 is the highest.
Richard Hamner, the program manager of recovery support services for Be Well Texas, explained what level 2 and 3 recovery homes do.
“[Level 2 recovery homes] need managers that are there 24/7,” Hamner said. “Recovery support services have to be available. Level 3, they also have to provide life skill development — life skill classes — they have to have counseling available outside of peer support and recovery support, and generally they’re connected to an intensive outpatient treatment program.”
He added that recovery housing is worth subsidizing because of its proven efficacy in supporting the recovery process, including multiple studies by DePaul University of Oxford Houses, one major sober-living provider.
They found that individuals who stayed in Oxford homes were more likely to have higher incomes, lower incarceration rates, and lower substance use rates compared with those who did not use recovery housing services.
But for Hamner, the proof goes beyond research.
“I stayed in Oxford House for three years, and had I not gotten married, I probably would’ve stayed another year or two,” Hamner said. “That was over 15 years ago now. Where I was at one time, I was in Austin under a bridge.”
He said he’d also served time in prison for a drug-related felony conviction and had a warrant out for his arrest.
“So yeah, a lot to overcome, and sober living, recovery housing, played a big part in that,” Hamner said.
Besides a home manager and recovery support services, Hamner said a big part of the success of recovery homes is the personal responsibility that comes with them. Residents have their own chores and roles in the house, and they act to support and hold one another accountable to those tasks with the knowledge of the shared struggle they all face.
In addition to the four homes in San Antonio, three of which are for men and one of which is for women, there are 12 homes in the Houston area, 11 in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, four in Austin, and a few homes each in Lubbock, El Paso, and Midland that will be available for subsidized living.
The voucher will pay for three to four months all on its own, but residents can provide a portion of the rent themselves to stretch out their time. They can also apply for a new voucher when they run out if funding is still available.
Hamner said the level 3 housing vouchers are worth $6,800 and the level 2 housing vouchers are worth $4,500. Rent varies from house to house, but goes up as the level of care does, ranging from around $800 to $1,500 per month.
The goal is that over time, individuals will move from higher care and higher rent level 3 or 4 homes down to lower care and lower rent homes at level 1 or 2 as their recovery process goes on. At level 1 Oxford Houses, rent can run around $500 or $600 per month, making it affordable for long-term stays.
“We’re subsidizing the higher level of care, and then as they’re working then they can kind of support themselves,” Hamner said. “At the same time, now they’re able to develop those life skills — saving and budgeting, and doing those types of things, now they’re really setting themselves up to be successful.”
Though Hamner said the initial idea behind the grant was to stand up new homes, it ended up being more cost effective to plug into the pre-existing recovery housing provider field and pay for those providers to get nationally certified so they could subsidize stays in their locations.
For more information about the recovery housing subsidies, contact Be Well Texas at 888-852-3935.
Este lunes se lleva a cabo en el centro de Convenciones de San Antonio un Simposio sobre el Uso de Sustancias donde hay recursos disponibles para el tratamiento, además de información de especialistas.
Para ver la entrevista completa de Univision, haga clic aquí.
To watch the full Fox San Antonio interview, click here.
SAN ANTONIO - According to the Centers for Disease Control, more than 107,000 people across the U.S. died from drug overdose in 2021. Over the next two days, the annual Texas Substance Use Symposium will be offering solutions.
Speaker at the conference and as a person in remission, Ariel Britt says she was a different person 11 years ago. Britt knew she wouldn’t have the life she has now if she kept abusing alcohol and cocaine.
"At some point my body just shut down and had this perfect window of opportunity and clarity that I wasn’t going to have the life that I dreamed,” says Britt.
The Symposium aims at increasing drug recovery programs to all 254 counties in Texas.
"We know when people are treated for a substance use disorder with evidence based treatment or science based treatment it reduces the likelihood of a death," says organizer of the symposium and vice president of research of UT Health San Antonio and Executive Director of Be Well Texas Dr. Jennifer Potter.
Potter says the conversation at the conference also includes drugs laced with Fentanyl.
"Young people, it’s very common they might experiment. When you experiment and there are very dangerous and illicitly made drugs like fentanyl. It makes it that much more dangerous for people to try even once," says Potter.
"Once you find recovery it doesn’t mean your life is over; it means you have a new life coming," says Britt.
And for Britt, she now works at the University of Texas for the Addiction Research Institute creating policies and serving as a true role model for change.
"I wouldn’t have this baby. I wouldn't have the amazing fiancé that I have today. I wouldn’t have this life," says Britt.
To watch the full KSAT interview, click here.
SAN ANTONIO – Finding safe, sober homes for young adults in recovery can be tough, but it’s crucial to end the cycle of addiction.
Trauma started early in 18-year-old Brianna’s life.
“I was adopted at a very early age of 8. Supposedly, I was sexually abused as a little girl and taken away,” she said.
Brianna struggled with that trauma, even after being adopted into a safe home.
She then decided to leave that home and go out on her own. That’s when she fell into some dangerous situations.
“I was pretty much on the verge of being homeless, ending up in motel rooms with men and just different, very unsafe places,” she said.
Brianna’s parents found Deborah’s House, a transitional home for women recovering from different addictions.
The house, run by Corazon Ministries, is one of several transitional houses across San Antonio, but many are not certified at a national standard. That’s where UT Health San Antonio’s “Be Well Texas” program comes in. It’s a program for people seeking help with substance use and/or mental illness. The program specializes in patients struggling with opioid addiction.
The Texas Department of Health and Human Services awarded Be Well Texas $3.4 million to strengthen recovery housing for young adults aged 18-25.
“We wanted to offer a higher level of care. So there’s an organization called NARR, which is a National Association of Recovery Residences, and they set some standards of what those levels of care are,” said Richard Hamner, the clinical research program manager at UT Health San Antonio’s Be Well Texas program.
With the grant money, Be Well Texas will cover costs to operate homes that are certified as “level 2″ or “level 3″ on NARR’s four-level service scale. NARR is the most widely referenced national standard for the operation of recovery residences, working with and supporting 30 state affiliate organizations.
“Level one is like an Oxford house, which is a self-run, democratically-run home. There’s a level two and a level three, which does provide more structure. So you have a house manager, and you would even have counseling services and that type of thing on site,” Hamner explained.
“Level two means that we have a recovery support peer specialist on staff, which is me,” Deborah’s House Director Ashley O’Leary said.
The new state funding provided O’Leary with extra training and certification. She said the new certification has offered structure and support to her team, which is necessary when handling such vulnerable clients.
“A lot of them are suffering from substance use disorder or mental health concerns. They’ve completed treatment, they’re coming out of jail, or we have one right now that was currently homeless at Haven for Hope that just moved in,” O’Leary said.
Her assistant director at the house is also in the process of getting trained and certified.
“We have counselors, we have mentors, we have classes we go to, and I love them,” Brianna said. “They’re directors, but they’re friends, and they’re family, and they’re counselors all at the same time.”
Similar funding will cover training and administrative costs for more than 40 transitional houses in the state, with a total of 440 beds.
“Those life skills may include employment readiness, GED education, healthy eating, home management and budgeting. And the homes also provide other essential social support,” Hamner said.
Hamner and O’Leary both know the importance of those things. They are both in long-term recovery as well. Hamner has been to inpatient and outpatient facilities, and O’Leary lived in Deborah’s House when it was established in 2012.
“Living in a home where everyone in there is dealing with the same challenges and the same issues, and they can mentor each other and they can kind of work through those for those programs, that’s just a huge thing,” Hamner said.
With the elevated structure from the funding, the hope is that these current organizations will be able to open even more houses.
“We definitely want to be able to expand. We’re looking into some different properties as a board and trying to grow our organization,” O’Leary said.
Brianna has friends that would like to get into similar housing, but many transitional homes are at capacity. She hopes more homes will open so people across San Antonio can find the recovery and safety she has.
“Deborah’s House is a definite safe haven for me. I feel loved every time I walk in here. To know that other people care makes us care about ourselves and makes us want to keep going and have a will,” Brianna said.
The program at Deborah’s House offers free rent for a month or month and a half while clients find a job and set out goals. Once they find a job, they only have to pay $400 in rent while finishing the recovery program that lasts anywhere from nine to 18 months.
“I don’t have to worry about all the light bills. I can worry about what I need to worry about right now and get done what I can so that I can stand up again on my own,” Brianna said.
Brianna now has a job and is getting her GED. She is finally emerging from darkness to see how bright her future can be.
People ages 18 through 25 with a substance use or mental health diagnosis can qualify for this program. For more information, contact Be Well Texas at (888) 85-BeWell, (888) 852-3935.
Boosting access to more than 40 houses, 440 beds statewide
Contact: Steven Lee, 210-450-3823, lees22@uthscsa.edu
SAN ANTONIO, March 21, 2023 – Young adults in Texas with a substance use disorder often face housing insecurity, marked by unstable or inadequate living arrangements without support for long-term recovery from addiction.
Be Well Texas, a program of UT Health San Antonio that treats patients statewide for opioid and other substance use disorders by partnering with organizations and building a network across Texas, has been awarded a three-year, $3.4 million grant for a pilot program to support recovery housing statewide for emerging adults ages 18 to 25 undergoing treatment and recovery.
The grant funding from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission will help expand access to 16 existing housing providers with more than 40 houses and 440 beds, covering the costs of required certifications, training and technical assistance, and related administrative costs.
The recovery houses are for those seeking long-term recovery from a substance use disorder diagnosis, in safe, healthy, recovery-friendly environments. The need is particularly critical for young adults in recovery in Texas who often experience housing insecurity.
“Meeting their basic need for housing allows them to focus on the other areas in life that would promote their recovery and overall well-being,” said Richard Hamner, MSW, BASc, program manager of recovery support services for Be Well Texas.
“Bridging gaps for safe recovery housing involves peer support, counseling and teaching life skills to help individuals positively adapt and effectively deal with challenges of everyday life,” he said. “Those life skills may include employment readiness, GED education, healthy eating, home management and budgeting. And the homes also provide other essential social support.”
Originally, the state considered opening 12 new recovery residences, but funding was insufficient to build that many homes as startups.
Be Well Texas believed it would be more cost-effective to use funding to support existing recovery housing providers, but cover their costs to operate as homes certified as “level 2” or “level 3” on a four-level service scale of the National Alliance for Recovery Residences. The NARR is a nonprofit organization that has developed the most widely referenced national standard for the operation of recovery residences, working with and supporting 30 state affiliate organizations.
Aside from the state and the NARR, other partners include RecoveryPeople/TROHN (Texas Recovery-Oriented Housing Network) for the training and technical assistance, and the various providers of recovery housing services across Texas. Be Well Texas created a statement of work for the project and sent a request for applications to more than 300 providers. The hope is that these providers will continue to open new homes and beds in the future.
“By increasing access to recovery residences for emerging adults, Be Well Texas is filling a gap in the substance use disorder continuum,” said Briseida “Bee” Courtois, MSW, LCDC, director of substance use services for Be Well Texas. “We along with Health and Human Services are setting a benchmark in recovery housing through support of this one-of-a-kind, medication-assisted-treatment friendly, NARR-certified level 2 and 3 housing assistance program for a high need group of young adults.”
Individuals ages 18 through 25 with a substance use or mental health diagnosis can qualify. For more information, contact Be Well Texas at (888) 85-BeWell, (888) 852-3935.
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), is one of the country’s leading health science universities and is designated as a Hispanic-Serving Institution by the U.S. Department of Education. With missions of teaching, research, patient care and community engagement, its schools of medicine, nursing, dentistry, health professions and graduate biomedical sciences have graduated more than 41,100 alumni who are leading change, advancing their fields and renewing hope for patients and their families throughout South Texas and the world. To learn about the many ways “We make lives better®,” visit UTHealthSA.org.
Stay connected with The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
Be Well Texas is UT Health San Antonio’s substance use disorder program. It is funded by Texas Health and Human Services, and it supports patients around the state.
But officials at Be Well Texas argue their approach to addiction recovery goes beyond medication and 12-step programs. They said their holistic approach means more paths to recovery.
Dr. Tara Wright, the senior director of Be Well Texas, explained the philosophy behind their approach.
“We really try to look at it from a more holistic perspective, of what does this patient need?” Wright said. “That’s why there’s case management in our clinic to figure out what do they need — do they need food vouchers, is there legal assistance, is there housing insecurity issues that are occurring? What are the problems that individual is facing? Because all of that contributes to the substance use disorder.”
The virtual and in-person clinic services are free for low-income Texans, but Wright and others realized that paying for the services wasn’t the only barrier between patients and treatment. Another huge issue was transportation.
So, in late December, Be Well Texas finalized a deal with Lyft Healthcare to offer free rides for patients to get to the San Antonio clinic, and to labs and pharmacies around the state.
When a patient needs to make a clinic appointment or get to labs or a pharmacy, they will call their case manager at Be Well Texas and provide them with a pick up and drop off location. Then, support staff will arrange the ride and provide the patient with a window of time that works for them. All the patient has to do is get to the right location, get in the car, and they’re on their way to critical services.
Richard Hamner, Be Well Texas’ program manager of recovery support services, said when he was dealing with the worst of his substance use disorders, having free access to transportation would have been a lifeline.
“I still had a warrant out for my arrest, I had to take care of those issues, I didn’t have a driver’s license, didn’t have a vehicle, couldn’t get around,” Hamner said. “I also had legal challenges and other things that came with that — so I had appointments to make, I had to meet with parole officers, I had classes to attend, not to mention outpatient [care]. I needed mental health services at the time, with the bipolar and depressive disorders that I also had. Had I had Lyft, that would have made making those appointments quite a bit easier.”
He said that when he was dealing with all of these issues 15 years ago, he had to rely on public transportation. It was a critical tool but it wasn’t adequate for his needs. He added that it remains inadequate for the needs of many dealing with substance use disorders. So he had to make hard choices about what parts of his life to tend to and which parts to neglect.
“When I have to make all of these different appointments, I’m probably going to either no-show or not make some of those appointments. And then I just have to prioritize what’s most important. Generally, medication, making those appointments, were low on the priority list. They were most important for me physically, but not legally.”
Claudia Draper, a practice manager at Be Well Texas, said about 40 people around the state utilized the free Lyft Healthcare services to get to appointments, pharmacies, and labs.
She explained that the initial contract with Lyft Healthcare is a year-long, with the likelihood of renewal.
Be Well Texas is also starting to subsidize recovery housing for 18- to 25 year olds dealing with substance use disorders, finding ways to get people connected to internet services, and working with people in prison so that they can be on a path to recovery by the time they get out.
Wright said part of the reason for all of these services is that the need for substance use disorder treatment is so great in Texas — and it’s only increasing.
“Since the year prior to the pandemic [to] the year after, we saw almost a 79% increase in overdoses in the state,” she said. “So it is a huge need in our state alone, so in San Antonio it’s just the same.”
She said Be Well Texas has grown to try to accommodate that need, going from nine employees four years ago to more than 90. With that growth, and a new clinic which is in use but has not yet had its grand opening, Wright said they’re able to accomplish more.
“This space means the world to us because what it means is we’re able to come together and do things like problem solve for our patients and ensure that we’re collaborating with all of our experts and program managers like Richard [Hamner] to come up with creative solutions to barriers our patients hit,” she explained.
One of those creative solutions is Be Well Texas’ peer to peer support services, inspired by Hamner’s own experience as someone in long-term recovery from substance use disorders.
“I was what they called a 'serial relapser.' I was in and out of all kinds of treatment programs — residential, outpatient, you name it, and none of those were really successful,” he explained.
He said it required engaging with multiple different types of programs, including faith-based counseling, a men’s accountability group and a 12-step support group before he really saw results. That’s what made him realize that no one method to recovery will work for all people, and in fact, many people will need numerous different methods simultaneously in order to make progress.
“Whether it be mental health treatment, substance use treatment, whether it be some kind of job training, GED, whatever that is that we can help connect them for," he said, "we’re there, and we can do those things.”
Texas Public Radio is supported by contributors to the Bioscience and Medicine News Desk including UT Health San Antonio and Dr. Johnny and Joni Reyna, supporting prostate cancer research and early detection to save lives.
Contact: Steven Lee, 210-450-3823, lees22@uthscsa.edu
SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 2, 2023 – A patient with a substance use disorder in a rural town outside Houston recently needed lab work done before she could be prescribed medication for her treatment. But she didn’t have a ride to the lab.
Not a problem, as it turned out. Be Well Texas, a program of UT Health San Antonio that treats patients statewide for opioid and other substance use disorders, arranged for Lyft to pick her up at home and take her to the lab and back home again. And all free of charge to the patient.
UT Health San Antonio, on behalf of Be Well Texas, entered into an agreement with Lyft Healthcare to provide transportation for patients in need to its clinic in San Antonio, but also for telehealth patients anywhere in the state who need rides to the lab or the pharmacy. Lyft Healthcare is the ride-hailing company’s service for health care patients. The agreement is fulfilling an urgent need.
“About 30% or more of our patients lack transportation,” said Van King, MD, DFAPA, FASAM, medical director with Be Well Texas. “Others have transportation but are limited with their funds because they work part-time, just started working or just lost their job. They have to be very mindful of how they spend their money, and that obviously includes transportation. This helps our patients whose budgets are limited.”
Be Well Texas, funded by Texas Health and Human Services, provides treatment and resources statewide virtually, and in-person at its clinic in San Antonio’s South Texas Medical Center, at 5109 Medical Drive. Patients who are seen by virtual visits statewide additionally can get a ride for follow-up appointments with a primary care physician, if a Be Well Texas provider determines those are medically necessary.
Under the agreement, Be Well Texas is offering access to rides for all patients age 18 or older regardless of their ability pay. Lyft Healthcare ensures compliance with HIPAA and federal and state regulatory requirements to protect patient privacy and to ensure health care rides are handled in a lawful manner.
Be Well Texas personnel are trained in requesting rides for a patient, and can do so for those who do not have reliable transportation or resources to travel to clinic, lab and pharmacy visits – and for those who might not even have a permanent physical address. “We do have homeless patients who are in need,” said Claudia Draper, MBA, a practice manager with Be Well Texas. “We have a patient who came in recently who’s homeless and he would walk and ride the bus to get to our clinic.”
The ride service is limited to medically necessary appointments and laboratory and pharmaceutical services required for treatment for patients of Be Well Texas. For more information, visit https://bewelltexas.org, or call the clinic at (888) 85 Be Well, (888) 852-3935.
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), is one of the country’s leading health science universities and is designated as a Hispanic-Serving Institution by the U.S. Department of Education. With missions of teaching, research, patient care and community engagement, its schools of medicine, nursing, dentistry, health professions and graduate biomedical sciences have graduated more than 41,100 alumni who are leading change, advancing their fields and renewing hope for patients and their families throughout South Texas and the world. To learn about the many ways “We make lives better®,” visit UTHealthSA.org.
Stay connected with The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
SAN ANTONIO, Dec. 13, 2022 – With the U.S. grappling with an unprecedented opioid-related overdose crisis, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio) has been been awarded a $1.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to research peer recovery support services for people living with opioid use disorder.
While medication for opioid use disorder can reduce rates of disease or deaths, data suggests that certain support services both aid treatment and sustain long-term recovery.
Those services can include emerging “peer” support, in which individuals with lived experience in addiction have specialized training in supporting others during their recovery by providing non-clinical linkages to treatment – such as mentorship, referrals for medical illnesses, occupational training, housing and education. However, there are gaps in knowledge of the approach that limit broader adoption.
“This is what this new grant funding is designed to address,” said Jennifer Sharpe Potter, PhD, MPH, vice president for research and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at UT Health San Antonio, and a principal investigator for the NIH grant funding along with Robert Ashford, PhD, CEO of RecoveryLink, a recovery support technology company. Potter also is executive director of Be Well Texas, a statewide initiative of UT Health San Antonio funded by Texas Health and Human Services, providing equitable access to treatment and care for substance use disorder (SUD).
“We propose a research network that will provide systematic integration and collaboration between researchers and community-based organizations and develop a pipeline of future recovery scientists to close empirical and practice gaps in peer recovery support services, or PRSS,” she said.
Focus on stakeholder engagement
A lot is at stake with the effort, amid a backdrop of 107,000 opioid-related drug overdose deaths in the U.S. in the 12 months ending in January 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
The Peer Recovery Innovation Network, the name of the new research network under the grant effort, will focus on stakeholder engagement in research agenda-setting, enhance the infrastructure for PRSS recovery science research and accelerate the growth of the PRSS evidence base in priority areas and populations, with training and telementoring as key approaches.
“We will utilize the innovative Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes, ECHO, model,” said Adrienne Lindsey, DBH, MA, director of the Center for Substance Use Training and Telementoring at UT Health San Antonio. “This telementoring model will be used to expose researchers and clinicians interested in recovery support services and recovery science to the latest research findings and best practice, as well as provide a platform to vet research works in progress to get critical feedback from colleagues and subject matter experts in a budding field.”
Expanding recovery science
The effort will expand recovery science by developing a research program on PRSS during medication for opioid use disorder treatment using a novel research agenda-setting approach and an associated collaborative process, training and mentoring, and infrastructure development.
Specific aims include:
“We believe all this will inform development and expansion of services and strengthen the system of care that those with opioid use disorder may use to initiate and maintain recovery,” Potter said.
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), a primary driver of San Antonio’s $44.1 billion health care and biosciences sector, is the largest research institution in South Texas with an annual research portfolio of $360 million. Driving substantial economic impact with its six professional schools, a diverse workforce of more than 7,900, an annual operating budget of $1.08 billion and clinical practices that provide 2.6 million patient visits each year, UT Health San Antonio plans to add more than 1,500 higher-wage jobs over the next five years to serve San Antonio, Bexar County and South Texas. To learn about the many ways “We make lives better®,” visit UTHealthSA.org.
Stay connected with The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
UT Health San Antonio contact: Steven Lee, 210-450-3823, lees22@uthscsa.edu
Hill Country MHDD contact: Kelsi Wilmot, 830-370-6302, kelsi8310@hillcountry.org
SAN ANTONIO, Dec. 7, 2022 – Be Well Texas, a statewide initiative of UT Health San Antonio, and Hill Country Mental Health & Developmental Disabilities Centers have entered into an agreement to provide substance use disorder (SUD) treatment services to Uvalde residents.
They will jointly provide on-demand, 24/7 access to a virtual navigation hub for peer recovery support services, behavioral health screening, case management and crisis services.
Be Well Texas, funded by Texas Health and Human Services, provides resources virtually, or in-person upon request, regardless of ability to pay. The new services in Uvalde come at a pivotal time, following the tragic shootings earlier this year at Robb Elementary School.
“We knew that people were struggling with their mental health in Uvalde, and there has been a behavioral health care response, but often after a tragedy, substance use disorder will follow,” said Jennifer Sharpe Potter, PhD, MPH, vice president for research and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at UT Health San Antonio, and executive director of Be Well Texas.
“We anticipate the degree of substance misuse to increase in the community of Uvalde,” said Tod Citron, chief executive officer of Hill Country MHDD Centers. “We understand that the risk of developing a substance use disorder is significantly greater when a loss is traumatic or occurs under traumatic circumstances. We are prepared to offer support to those who are struggling with substance misuse, whether drug- or alcohol-related.”
Under the agreement with Hill Country MHDD Centers, which has a location in Uvalde, Be Well Texas will offer medication and management for SUD, psychiatric evaluations, laboratory tests, and individual and family therapy, in addition to case management and peer recovery support services with professionals with shared addiction experiences.
The services, including medication and labs for treatment, will be offered at no cost to patients who qualify.
Hill Country MHDD Centers will provide assessments for those individuals who present for services and screen positive for substance misuse in the Uvalde community. The organization will be working with Be Well Texas to provide further assessment and treatment services that include medication assistance, counseling, family education and other services that promote recovery.
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), a primary driver of San Antonio’s $44.1 billion health care and biosciences sector, is the largest research university in South Texas with an annual research portfolio of $350 million. Driving substantial economic impact with its five professional schools, a diverse workforce of more than 7,000, an annual operating budget of more than $1 billion and a clinical practice that provides more than 2 million patient visits each year, UT Health San Antonio plans to add more than 1,500 higher-wage jobs over the next five years to serve San Antonio, Bexar County and South Texas. To learn about the many ways “We make lives better®,” visit http://uthscsa.edu.
Stay connected with The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
Hill Country MHDD Centers serves the greater Texas Hill Country Region, including 19 counties: Bandera, Blanco, Comal, Edwards, Gillespie, Hays, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble, Kinney, Llano, Mason, Medina, Menard, Real, Schleicher, Sutton, Uvalde and Val Verde. With a mission of Promoting Independence, Community Integration, and Recovery, Hill Country MHDD Centers has 22 locations, including 14 Mental Health Clinics and 8 Developmental Disability Centers serving a population of over 630,000 within a 22,593 square mile area. To find out more about our services, please visit www.hillcountry.org.
