Yes, and the same goes for Leander. Lyte Psychiatry sees Cedar Park and Leander patients by secure video from home, with the same prescriber at every visit. Most new patients are seen within 1–2 business days. Insured patients usually pay a $0–$30 copay per visit, and a self-pay psychiatric evaluation is $250.
Who is this page for in Cedar Park and Leander?
The school year in Leander ISD starts in August, and by the second six weeks a counselor at Vandegrift, Leander High, or Cedar Park High has usually sent home a note about a teenager who stopped turning in work. The parent who gets that note is the first person we wrote this for. You have a BCBS TX or UnitedHealthcare plan through a job in the Austin tech corridor or at Baylor Scott & White Cedar Park, and you have already found out that the child psychiatrists who take your plan are booked into next semester.
The second reader is the adult in that same house. You moved out here for the schools and the lot size, you commute down 183A or ride the Red Line in from Leander Station, and you have not slept well since the move. Your primary care doctor at Cedar Park Regional Medical Center or Baylor Scott & White Cedar Park offered a prescription and a referral. The referral went nowhere.
Both cities sit in Williamson County, where Bluebonnet Trails Community Services is the public mental health authority. Bluebonnet Trails is built for people with no coverage and serious mental illness. A family with a commercial plan or $250 is usually seen faster at a private practice that takes the plan. That is the gap this page fills. An Austin Community College student at the Cypress Creek campus on a parent's plan fits here too.
What can Lyte treat for Cedar Park and Leander patients?
Psychiatric evaluation and medication management for adults, teens, and children. Dr. Akintola is board-certified in child and adolescent psychiatry, which matters in two cities built around Leander ISD campuses. Therapy with licensed professional counselors using CBT, solution-focused, and trauma-focused approaches. Combined care, where your prescriber and your therapist write in one shared chart. ADHD evaluation and treatment for adults and teens with stimulant and non-stimulant options.
We treat depression, anxiety, panic, social anxiety, PTSD and trauma, OCD, bipolar disorder, ADHD, insomnia, postpartum and perinatal mood problems, grief, and stress and burnout. We write letters for school and work on request, including 504 or accommodation letters for Leander ISD campuses.
Care for Cedar Park and Leander is video only. There is no Lyte office in either city, and our one clinic is in Pantego, outside Arlington, roughly 190 miles up I-35. We will not pretend that is a reasonable drive for a follow-up. You log in from your kitchen in Brushy Creek or your car in the Lakeline Mall parking lot, and your prescription goes electronically to your local H-E-B or Walgreens pharmacy during the visit.
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 Cedar Park and Leander families, that means a non-stimulant can begin at the first video visit, and the teen never leaves Williamson County. Video visits are available in Spanish; ask when you book.
A first video visit is with the prescriber, and if therapy would help you can book a counselor before you close the window. If you work a rotating shift at one of the hospitals near Whitestone Blvd, tell us when you book and we will look for a slot around it.
Learn how therapy and psychiatry work together when both are part of your care plan.
What the numbers say about Cedar Park and Leander
The two cities look alike on paper. CDC PLACES (BRFSS 2023) puts diagnosed depression among Cedar Park adults at 20.9% and among Leander adults at 21.6%. Frequent mental distress, meaning 14 or more poor mental health days in a month, is 15.1% in Cedar Park and 15.9% in Leander. Leander runs a little higher on both measures than its older neighbor, and both cities run higher on depression than Georgetown, the county seat, at 20.4% in the same release.
Cedar Park has 56,082 adults and Leander has 42,036, per the same CDC PLACES data. Taken together, roughly 98,000 adults live in the two cities, and about one in five of them has been told by a clinician that they have depression. Leander was the fastest-growing large city in the United States between 2020 and 2021 according to the U.S. Census Bureau, which means thousands of new households arrived in a short window with the same need for prescribers as everyone already here.
| Measure | Cedar Park | Leander | Georgetown | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adults diagnosed with depression | 20.9% | 21.6% | 20.4% | CDC PLACES, BRFSS 2023 |
| Frequent mental distress (14+ bad days/month) | 15.1% | 15.9% | 14.2% | CDC PLACES, BRFSS 2023 |
| Adult population (Williamson County) | 56,082 | 42,036 | 54,753 | 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 a psychiatrist cost in Cedar Park or Leander with 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 |
Cash prices are flat, and HSA and FSA cards are accepted. The plan most tied to these two cities is TRS-ActiveCare, the BCBS TX plan carried by Leander ISD teachers and staff, and it covers a dependent teenager the same way it covers the employee. Tech employers along the 183 and Parmer corridors typically offer UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, or Cigna PPOs, all in network. Hospital plans at Baylor Scott & White Cedar Park and Cedar Park Regional vary by system, so send us the card and we will confirm. Bring the card to the first visit or upload it when you book, and we will tell you the copay before the appointment.
Who will you see at Lyte?
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. He trained at Johns Hopkins, stayed on faculty there, and moved to Texas in 2012. Toyin Awe, PMHNP-BC, is a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner with 12 or more years of experience. Therapy is with NaTascha Jones, LPC, and Prishina Jimenez, LPC. Lyte has served 3,000+ patients with a 4.9-star average from 200+ Google reviews.
Your questions, answered
Frequently asked questions from Cedar Park and Leander patients
Can a Cedar Park or Leander patient see a psychiatrist online this week?
Yes. Most new patients from Cedar Park and Leander are seen by secure video within 1–2 business days, and same-week is the norm. You book online at any hour, and you do not need a referral from Baylor Scott & White Cedar Park or your Leander ISD campus counselor to start.
Is there a Lyte office in Cedar Park or Leander?
No. Cedar Park and Leander are video-only for Lyte. Our only clinic is in Pantego, outside Arlington, about 190 miles north on I-35, so we do not ask anyone from Williamson County to drive. Every visit, including the first, happens on a secure video link from wherever you are in Cedar Park or Leander.
How fast can a Leander ISD student get a first appointment?
Usually within 1–2 business days. Dr. Akintola is board-certified in child and adolescent psychiatry, so a student at Vandegrift, Rouse, Glenn, Leander High, or Cedar Park High can be evaluated by video after school without a parent taking a half day off. We write letters for Leander ISD 504 or accommodation meetings on request.
What does a psychiatrist cost in Cedar Park with TRS-ActiveCare or BCBS, and without insurance?
With TRS-ActiveCare or another in-network BCBS TX, UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, or Cigna plan, most Cedar Park and Leander 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. HSA and FSA cards work for the cash prices.
My teen is at a Leander ISD high school. Can they start ADHD medication by video?
Non-stimulant medication, 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. For a Leander family that does not want to drive to Pantego, a non-stimulant can begin at the first video visit, and the prescription goes to your pharmacy on Whitestone Blvd or Crystal Falls Pkwy during the visit.
Should a Williamson County resident call Bluebonnet Trails or Lyte?
Bluebonnet Trails Community Services is the public mental health authority for Williamson County and is the right call if you have no insurance and a serious mental illness, or if you are in crisis. If you have a commercial plan, Medicare, or Tricare, or you can pay $250, Lyte will usually see you sooner from Cedar Park or Leander and you keep the same prescriber every visit.
Can an ACC Cypress Creek student use a parent's insurance at Lyte?
Yes. An Austin Community College student at the Cypress Creek campus who is still on a parent's BCBS TX, UnitedHealthcare, or Aetna plan can book a video visit from an apartment in Cedar Park, and a student 18 or older books and consents for themselves. We verify the plan before the first visit so the copay is not a surprise.
Nearby areas we also serve
Explore care across Austin & Central Texas or all Texas locations.
We also see patients from Round Rock, Georgetown, Pflugerville, and Austin.
Free and low-cost mental health resources in Cedar Park and Leander
Bluebonnet Trails Community Services is the public mental health authority for Williamson County and serves residents without insurance. Call or text 988 any time for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Leander ISD campus counselors can refer a student to district-contracted supports, and Austin Community College offers counseling services to enrolled students at the Cypress Creek campus.
Book a video visit at book.lytepsych.com and we will verify your 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.