Yes. Lyte Psychiatry sees El Paso patients by secure video from anywhere in El Paso County, and we schedule on Mountain time. Most new patients are seen within 1–2 business days. If you are insured with Tricare, BCBS TX, or another in-network plan, you usually pay a $0–$30 copay per visit. A self-pay psychiatric evaluation is $250.
Who is this El Paso page for?
A spouse in base housing off Sheridan Road on Fort Bliss has been told the behavioral health clinic at William Beaumont Army Medical Center sees soldiers first and dependents when it can. She has Tricare, a referral she is not sure she needs, and a kid who stopped sleeping in August. This page is written for that family.
It is also written for the UTEP student who used the sessions Counseling and Psychological Services could give, was told to find a psychiatrist off campus, and is now calling down a list of practices on Mesa Street between classes. And for the teacher with a BCBS TX card from El Paso ISD or Ysleta ISD, or the nurse with UT SELECT from Texas Tech Health Sciences Center El Paso, who has left voicemails at practices on Montana Avenue and heard nothing back.
El Paso is short on psychiatrists in a way most Texas cities are not. UMC El Paso and Texas Tech HSC El Paso train residents, and Emergence Health Network, the public mental health authority for El Paso County, serves people without coverage first. An insured patient sits between those systems. If you have a plan we take, or can pay $250, we can usually see you this week from your kitchen table in the Upper Valley, Northeast, or Horizon City.
What can Lyte treat for El Paso patients by video?
Psychiatric evaluation and medication management for adults, teens, and children. Therapy with licensed professional counselors trained in CBT, solution-focused, and trauma-focused work. Combined care, where your prescriber and your therapist write in the same chart and read each other's notes. ADHD evaluation and treatment for adults and teens, with stimulant and non-stimulant options.
Conditions we treat include depression, anxiety, panic, social anxiety, PTSD and trauma, OCD, bipolar disorder, ADHD, insomnia, postpartum and perinatal mood problems, grief, and stress and burnout. Dr. Akintola is a licensed Suboxone prescriber for opioid use disorder, which matters for a soldier or veteran who was started on it elsewhere and needs a prescriber in Texas. We write clinical letters for school, work, and command on request.
Every El Paso visit is by secure video. There is no Lyte office in El Paso, and our only clinic sits in Pantego, inside Arlington, roughly 600 miles east on I-10 and I-20. We will not pretend that is a drive anyone should make for a follow-up. You keep the same provider at every visit, and prescriptions go to the El Paso pharmacy you name.
El Paso runs on Mountain time, an hour behind our schedulers in Pantego. They know this. When you book, check whether the time on your confirmation is Mountain or Central before you set an alarm, and if a slot looks wrong, call and we will fix it.
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 an El Paso patient, that means a non-stimulant such as atomoxetine or guanfacine can start at the first video visit without a trip east. Video visits are available in Spanish; ask when you book.
Learn how therapy and psychiatry work together when both are part of your care plan.
What the numbers say about El Paso
El Paso adults sit close to the state on depression and above it on distress. CDC PLACES (BRFSS 2023) puts diagnosed depression among El Paso adults at 20.0%, against 19.7% for Texas and 22.4% for San Antonio, the other large border-region city in the same release. Frequent mental distress, meaning 14 or more poor mental health days in a month, is 17.2% in El Paso, the same figure as San Antonio and a point above the Texas rate of 16.1%. El Paso County has 512,778 adults in that release, so 17.2% works out to about 88,000 people in a bad month.
The supply side is the problem. El Paso County has one of the worst psychiatrist-to-population ratios of any big American metro. Fort Bliss and the residency programs at UMC El Paso hold a share of the ones who are here.
| Measure | El Paso | San Antonio | Texas | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adults diagnosed with depression | 20.0% | 22.4% | 19.7% | CDC PLACES, BRFSS 2023 |
| Frequent mental distress (14+ bad days/month) | 17.2% | 17.2% | 16.1% | CDC PLACES, BRFSS 2023 |
| Adult population, El Paso County | 512,778 | 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.
How much does an online psychiatrist cost in El Paso with Tricare or other insurance?
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 |
Tricare is the card we expect most from Fort Bliss, and Tricare For Life plus Medicare covers retirees who stayed in the Northeast after their last assignment. El Paso ISD, Ysleta ISD, and Socorro ISD employees are on TRS-ActiveCare, which BCBS TX administers, and UTEP and Texas Tech HSC El Paso staff carry UT SELECT, also a BCBS TX plan. Both are in network. If you have no coverage, the prices above are flat, there is no facility fee, and HSA and FSA cards are accepted.
Who will you see at Lyte?
Dr. Akinwande Akintola, MD, is our medical director and supervisory psychiatrist. He is board-certified in Adult Psychiatry and in Child & Adolescent Psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, trained at Johns Hopkins and stayed on faculty there, and moved to Texas in 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 El Paso patients
Is there a psychiatrist taking new patients online in El Paso right now?
Yes. Most new El Paso patients get a video evaluation within 1–2 business days, booked online at any hour. You do not need a referral from a primary care doctor at UMC El Paso or a Texas Tech clinic to start, and you can keep any appointment you already have on another practice's list while you see us.
Does Lyte have an office in El Paso, or is every visit by video?
Every visit is by video. Our single clinic is in Pantego, inside Arlington, about 600 miles east of downtown El Paso on I-10 and I-20, and we do not ask anyone west of the Franklin Mountains to make that trip. The first evaluation, follow-ups, and therapy all happen over a secure video link from anywhere in El Paso County, including Fort Bliss housing.
I am at Fort Bliss on Tricare. Do I need a referral from WBAMC before booking?
It depends on your plan. On Tricare Select, you can book outpatient mental health care with a network provider like Lyte without a referral. On Tricare Prime, active duty members need a referral from their primary care manager, usually through William Beaumont Army Medical Center or a Fort Bliss clinic. Prime family members usually do not need one for outpatient mental health with a network provider, and we confirm that with Tricare before the first visit. Tell us which Tricare plan is on your card when you book.
What does a psychiatry visit cost in El Paso with insurance, and without it?
With Tricare, TRS-ActiveCare, UT SELECT, Medicare, or another in-network plan, most El Paso patients pay a $0–$30 copay per visit. Without insurance, a new-patient evaluation is $250, a medication follow-up is $150, and a first therapy session is $150. The price is the same whether you live in Kern Place or Socorro.
I am a UTEP student and CAPS referred me off campus. Can I see Lyte instead?
Yes. A UTEP student can book a video evaluation within 1–2 business days and take the visit from a dorm room or an apartment on Mesa, as long as you are inside Texas. Bring the name of any medication CAPS or a family doctor already started, and we will send a letter to the university if you need one for an accommodation.
¿Puedo tener mi cita en español desde El Paso?
Sí. Video visits are available in Spanish; ask when you book. The visit and the follow-ups can be in Spanish for a patient anywhere in El Paso County, and the copay or the $250 self-pay price does not change with the language.
Your clinic is on Central time. How does scheduling work from El Paso?
El Paso is on Mountain time, an hour behind Pantego, and our schedulers book El Paso patients with that in mind. A 9:00 a.m. Central slot is 8:00 a.m. in El Paso. Check the zone on your confirmation before you set an alarm, and if a slot lands during your shift at UMC or your class at UTEP, call and we will move it.
Can I start ADHD medication from El Paso without driving to Pantego?
For a non-stimulant, yes. 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. Most El Paso adults and teens who want to avoid a 600-mile drive start with a non-stimulant, and we can discuss the stimulant route at the first visit if a trip east is ever practical for you.
Nearby areas we also serve
Explore care across West Texas & the Panhandle or all Texas locations.
We also see patients by video from Midland, Odessa, Lubbock, San Angelo, and Abilene, and from anywhere else in Texas.
Free and low-cost mental health resources in El Paso
Emergence Health Network is the public mental health authority for El Paso County and serves residents without insurance. Call or text 988 any time for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline; service members and veterans can press 1 for the Veterans Crisis Line. La Frontera Center provides community behavioral health services in El Paso, NAMI El Paso runs peer and family support groups, TTUHSC El Paso Psychiatry offers academic clinics for complex cases, and William Beaumont Army Medical Center handles behavioral health for the Fort Bliss community.
Book a video visit at book.lytepsych.com and we will verify your Tricare, BCBS TX, or other 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.