Yes. Lyte Psychiatry sees Mission patients by secure video, whether you live year-round near Mission Regional Medical Center or winter at an RV park off Expressway 83. Most new patients are seen within 1–2 business days. Insured patients, including those on Medicare, usually pay a $0–$30 copay per visit; a self-pay psychiatric evaluation is $250.
Who is this Mission page for?
You arrived in October, the RV is parked for the season, and the medication your doctor back in Minnesota or Ontario has managed for years is running low. You could not get an appointment there before you left, and the clinics near Shary Rd have you on a callback list. You are a Winter Texan, and you are far from the only one in that spot. Mission and the west side of Hidalgo County fill with retirees from November to March, and the local psychiatric supply does not grow to match.
The year-round reader is different. You teach at Mission CISD or Sharyland ISD, or you work at Mission Regional Medical Center on Bryan Rd, and you have a commercial plan that ought to get you seen quickly. You are still waiting for a callback. Tropical Texas Behavioral Health, the public mental health authority for Hidalgo County, exists for people with no coverage, so a teacher on TRS-ActiveCare is not at the front of that line. Both readers need a prescriber who takes the plan and has a slot this week.
What can Lyte treat for Mission patients?
Psychiatric evaluation and medication management for adults, teens, and children. Therapy with licensed professional counselors, using CBT, solution-focused, and trauma-focused work. Combined care when you want both, with the prescriber and the counselor sharing one chart. ADHD evaluation and treatment for adults and teens.
Conditions include depression, anxiety, panic, social anxiety, PTSD and trauma, OCD, bipolar disorder, ADHD, insomnia, postpartum and perinatal mood problems, grief, and stress and burnout. For older patients, medication reviews are a large part of what we do: a retiree on four or five prescriptions from a northern doctor needs someone to check the mix, and that works well by video with the bottles in front of you.
Mode: video only, no drive. Lyte has no office in Mission, and our clinic in Pantego, near Arlington, sits over 500 miles north of the Anzalduas bridge. Asking a Mission patient to drive that would be silly, so we do not. You keep the same provider for every video visit, and prescriptions go electronically to your pharmacy in Mission, Sharyland, or Palmview.
If you are starting a stimulant for ADHD, our policy is that the first evaluation happens in person at our Pantego clinic; follow-ups can be by video. Non-stimulant ADHD medication and everything else can start by video. If a stimulant is on your mind, we will lay out the non-stimulant options first, since those start by video from Mission with no travel. Video visits are available in Spanish; ask when you book.
One rule for seasonal residents: you must be physically in Texas at the time of each video visit. We can see you from Mission all winter. Once you are back across the state line in April, we cannot, so we will plan your last spring visit and refills before you leave.
Learn how therapy and psychiatry work together when both are part of your care plan.
What the numbers say about Mission
Mission's numbers sit a little below Edinburg's and close to the Texas average. CDC PLACES (BRFSS 2023) reports 19.2% of Mission adults with diagnosed depression, compared with 20.1% in Edinburg, the county seat, and 19.7% across Texas. Frequent mental distress, 14 or more poor mental health days in a month, is 16.3% in Mission against 17.9% in Edinburg. Mission (Hidalgo County) has 61,359 adults in the same release, which puts about 10,000 adults in the frequent-distress group before a single Winter Texan is counted, since the survey measures permanent residents.
Supply is the harder problem. Texas DSHS projects the Rio Grande Valley will have the highest unmet psychiatric demand in the state, 71% by 2036.
| Measure | Mission | Edinburg | Texas | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adults diagnosed with depression | 19.2% | 20.1% | 19.7% | CDC PLACES, BRFSS 2023 |
| Frequent mental distress (14+ bad days/month) | 16.3% | 17.9% | 16.1% | CDC PLACES, BRFSS 2023 |
| Adult population, Mission (Hidalgo County) | 61,359 | CDC PLACES, BRFSS 2023 |
The depression and frequent mental distress figures are model-based estimates. Read the CDC PLACES methodology for the survey years, population basis, and estimation limits.
Does Medicare cover an online psychiatrist in Mission?
Yes. Original Medicare covers our video visits, and it works the same in Mission as it does in Iowa or Michigan. If you carry a Medicare Advantage plan from your home state, send us a photo of the card before you book; some of those plans limit out-of-area care, and we will tell you the answer before the visit. Humana is in network, and we confirm the specific Humana plan on your card at the same time.
In network: BlueCross BlueShield of Texas, UnitedHealthcare and Optum, Cigna and Evernorth, Aetna, Humana, Ambetter, Medicare, Tricare, and more (see the full list). Benefits are verified before the first visit. Most insured patients pay a $0–$30 copay per visit.
| Visit | Self-pay |
|---|---|
| Psychiatric evaluation (new patient) | $250 |
| Medication follow-up | $150 |
| Therapy, first session | $150 |
| Therapy, follow-up | $125 |
| QbCheck ADHD test | $150 |
| Late cancellation / no-show | $100 |
Self-pay is a flat price with no surprise bill, and HSA and FSA cards are accepted. For year-round Mission residents, the plans we see most are TRS-ActiveCare from Mission CISD and Sharyland ISD, which BCBS TX administers, and Ambetter marketplace plans, which are common across Hidalgo County. Hospital employees at Mission Regional Medical Center should check the carrier name on the card and send it with the booking.
Who will you see?
Dr. Akinwande Akintola, MD, is our medical director and supervisory psychiatrist, board-certified in Adult Psychiatry and in Child & Adolescent Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, trained at Johns Hopkins, in Texas since 2012. Toyin Awe, PMHNP-BC, is a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner with 12+ years of experience. NaTascha Jones, LPC, and Prishina Jimenez, LPC, provide therapy. Lyte has served 3,000+ patients and holds a 4.9-star average from 200+ Google reviews.
Your questions, answered
Frequently asked questions from Mission patients
I am a Winter Texan in Mission. Can you take over my prescriptions for the season?
Yes, as long as you are in Texas at the time of each visit. Bring your bottles and your northern doctor's last note to the first video visit, and we will continue what is working or adjust it. We will also time your last spring appointment so you have refills to carry you home. We cannot see you by video once you are back in Minnesota, Michigan, or Ontario.
Does Lyte have an office in Mission or the Rio Grande Valley?
No. Mission patients are seen by video only. Our one office is in Pantego, near Arlington, more than 500 miles north on US-281 and I-35. In-person psychiatry closer to home means Mission Regional Medical Center for hospital care or Tropical Texas Behavioral Health for public services, and both have limits on who they can see quickly.
Can I get a psychiatry appointment from Mission this week?
Most new Mission patients are seen within 1–2 business days. Book online at any hour. If a clinic on Conway Ave or Shary Rd has put you on a waiting list, you do not need a referral from them to book here, and you can keep your place on their list while you see us.
What will it cost me in Mission on Medicare or without insurance?
On Original Medicare or another in-network plan, most patients pay a $0–$30 copay per visit. Without insurance, a new-patient psychiatric evaluation is $250, a medication follow-up is $150, and a first therapy session is $150. For a snowbird whose Advantage plan turns out not to cover Texas, the $250 self-pay evaluation is a fixed price, and the $150 follow-up is too.
¿Hay citas en español para pacientes de Mission?
Sí. Video visits are available in Spanish; ask when you book. Mission families from Sharyland to Palmview can hold the whole visit in Spanish, including the medication talk, and a grandchild does not have to sit in and translate.
Can a Mission CISD teacher get a letter for work or a student get one for school?
Yes. We write clinical letters on request for Mission CISD, Sharyland ISD, and employers, and they are sent to you electronically after the visit. A teacher on TRS-ActiveCare usually pays the $0–$30 copay and can book a video slot for a conference period or after the last bell.
Do I have to drive to Pantego to start ADHD medication from Mission?
A non-stimulant starts by video from Mission with no travel. If you are starting a stimulant for ADHD, our policy is that the first evaluation happens in person at our Pantego clinic; follow-ups can be by video. Non-stimulant ADHD medication and everything else can start by video. For most Mission patients, including a Winter Texan who will be gone by April, that makes the non-stimulant route the practical first step.
Nearby areas we also serve
Explore care across San Antonio & South Texas or all Texas locations.
We also see patients from McAllen, Edinburg, Pharr, Harlingen, and Brownsville.
Free and low-cost mental health resources in Mission
Tropical Texas Behavioral Health is the public mental health authority for Hidalgo County and serves residents without insurance or with limited means. Call or text 988 any time for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Mission Regional Medical Center on Bryan Rd is the in-town emergency room for a psychiatric crisis, and Tropical Texas runs a crisis response for Hidalgo County residents who cannot wait for a scheduled visit.
Book a video visit at book.lytepsych.com and we will verify your Medicare or commercial benefits before you are seen. Or call 469-733-0848.
Find the public mental health authority for your county through the Texas HHS local authority directory.