Today, Congressman Tony Gonzales (TX-23) attended and participated as a guest speaker at the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Uvalde Regional Behavioral Health Campus. The new inpatient facility will service 32 counties in rural Texas and provide critical mental health resources to an underserved region that stretches from the Bexar County line (San Antonio) to the Texas-Mexico border.

Congressman Gonzales secured $2 million for the construction of this campus through his role on the House Appropriations Committee in Congress. 

“Today’s groundbreaking ceremony is historic. It marks a new chapter for mental health access in a region that has long been overlooked,” said Congressman Tony Gonzales. “I am grateful for all the partners that helped make this vision a reality. The new Behavioral Health Campus will connect 32 Texas counties with 24/7 access to professional mental health services. This facility is transformative not only for the Uvalde community, which has endured so much suffering, but for the entire State of Texas, and I am proud to have secured federal funding to support its construction.”

BACKGROUND: 

Two buildings will make up the campus. One will be a regional behavioral health care building focusing on crisis stabilization and acting as a 24/7 diversion center for walk-in patients and Individuals referred by law enforcement. A second building will be dedicated to outpatient programs. Hill Country Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Centers will operate and oversee the construction of the 50,000-square-foot campus through a contract with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. The City of Uvalde donated seven acres of land where the campus will be built. Governor Greg Abbott (R-TX) signed state legislation into law, approving millions in state funding for the new Uvalde Regional Behavioral Health Campus. The facility is expected to be operational by the summer of 2025.