This Veterans Day, the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute honors the men and women who served our country, and, especially, their families. We also want to recognize the Texas Legislature and our state leaders, especially State Senator Jane Nelson, for their work to support our veterans and their families through the Texas Veterans + Family Alliance (TV+FA). TV+FA is an innovative program within the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) that is supporting community mental health programs providing and coordinating services and treatment for Texas veterans and military families. Made possible through Senate Bill 55, and funded with $20 million in state dollars, this program is being matched by local, private funds, and in-kind services to provide a total of $40 million in mental health support for veterans and military families.
The Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute is proud to support our Texas veterans and their families by serving as the Administrator for TV+FA at no cost to the State of Texas. As Administrator, we work closely with HHSC to develop the Request for Application for the grant program, assist with grant recipient selection, develop program and performance data to determine effectiveness of grant-funded services provided, support grant program evaluation, and work with local communities to identify matching funds.
Our work with Texas Veterans + Family Alliance aligns closely with another key initiative of the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute, which is encouraging Texans, including veterans and their families, talk openly about their mental health. We want our veterans and their families to know that it is OKAY TO SAY™ that you need help for your mental health since talking openly about mental health is the first step to helping people obtain care for a treatable condition.
We encourage veterans and military family members who need mental health assistance or support to contact a TV+FA grantee in your area. The TV+FA pilot grantees are:
- Center for Brain Health (serving the Dallas/Fort Worth area)
- Emergence Health Network (serving El Paso and Fort Bliss)
- Texas Panhandle Centers (serving the 30 northern most counties in the Texas Panhandle)
- Tropical Texas (serving Cameron County)
- United Way of Denton County (serving Denton County)
Additional TV+FA grantees that will begin serving veterans and their families in the near future are:
- Heroes Night Out (proposing to serve Bastrop, Bell, Caldwell, Coryell, Hays, Lampasas, Travis and Williamson counties)
- Veterans Coalition of North Central Texas (proposing to serve Bell, Collin, Coryell, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Erath, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Navarro, Palo Pinto, Parker, Rockwall, Somervall, Tarrant and Wise counties)
- Equest (proposing to serve Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Fannin, Grayson, Hunt, Kaufman, Rockwall, Tarrant and Van Zandt counties)
- Heart of Texas Regional Mental Health and Mental Retardation Center (proposing to serve Bosque, Falls, Freestone, Hill, Limestone and McLennan counties)
- Catholic Charities of Fort Worth (proposing to serve Archer, Baylor, Dallas, Denton, Foard, Hood, Johnson, Knox, Montague, Parker, Tarrant and Wichita counties)
- Tropical Texas Behavioral Health (proposing to serve Hidalgo County)
- West Texas Counseling & Guidance (proposing to serve Coke, Concho, Crockett, Irion, Kimble, Mason, McCulloch, Menard, Reagan, Runnels, Schleicher, Sterling, Sutton and Tom Green counties)
- Easter Seals of Greater Houston (proposing to serve Bell, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, Walker, Waller and Wharton counties)
- Texoma Community Center (proposing to serve Cooke, Fannin and Grayson counties)
- Family Endeavors (proposing to serve Brewster, Culberson, El Paso, Hudspeth, Jeff Davis, and Presidio counties)
- The Ecumenical Center (proposing to serve Bexar County)
- Headstrong Project (proposing to serve Harris County)
- StarCare Specialty Health System (proposing to serve Bailey, Borden, Castro, Cochran, Crosby, Dawson, Dickens, Dimmit, Floyd, Garza, Hale, Hockley, Lamb, Lubbock, Lynn, Motley, Parmer, Swisher, Terry and Yoakum counties)
- Metrocare Services (proposing to serve Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Somervall, Tarrant and Wise counties)
Access to effective mental health care is a critical issue for all Texans, but we owe a special debt to our veterans and their families, especially on Veterans Day. Texas Veterans + Family Alliance is a bold initiative by the State of Texas to address those mental health needs. HHSC is currently accepting applications for the second round of funding in the TV+FA program.
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