About Us
Need, Mission, & Vision
Strengthening mental health care and systems for children, youth, and perinatal women
Through our interconnected statewide programs and initiatives, the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium expands the knowledge, confidence, and capacity of clinicians, schools, and systems to care for children, youth, and perinatal women in Texas while strengthening the state’s mental health workforce.
For Health Care Clinicians
Texas faces significant child and maternal mental health challenges that no single institution or program can address alone. Workforce shortages contribute to long wait times and limited access to mental and behavioral health care.
In response, the 86th Texas Legislature created the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium (TCMHCC) in 2019 to strengthen the state’s mental health care system for perinatal women, children, and adolescents.
1 in 5 children, youth, and pregnant/postpartum women have a diagnosable mental health condition.
#1 leading underlying cause of pregnancy-related deaths in the United States and Texas is untreated mental health needs.
More than 95% of Texas counties have been consistently identified as Mental Health Care Health Professional Shortage Areas.
The Consortium aligns expertise, expands access, and builds lasting, research-driven capacity across Texas, facilitating earlier diagnosis and treatment of mental health conditions and enabling more patients to receive mental health care through their primary care clinicians, rather than relying on limited specialty services.
With continued legislative support, our interconnected programs and initiatives operate at all levels of the mental health system statewide—and offer a model for Texas and the nation. TCMHCC takes an integrated approach to child mental health support.
Our Structure
The TCMHCC is a statewide collaboration of leaders and experts in health-related institutions, mental health and medical care, education and higher education, and the health and human services and protective services systems, as directed by the Texas Legislature.
Our Vision, Mission, and Goals
Our vision:
All Texas children and adolescents will have the best mental health outcomes possible.
Our mission:
Advance mental health care quality and access for all Texas children and adolescents through inter-institutional collaboration, leveraging the expertise of the state’s health-related institutions of higher education, local and state government agencies, and local and state mental health organizations.
Our Goals:
We advance our mission and vision through evidence-based programs and initiatives that:
- Strengthen Texas’s mental health system.
- Support early detection, diagnosis, and treatment through expert consultations and continuing education for clinicians, schools, and care teams.
- Build long-term system capacity through research, thought leadership, and workforce development.
