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A FIGHTER FOR OUR FAMILIES

Mental Health

One in five Texas adults lives with a mental health condition. Youth mental health crises are steady on the rise. An overwhelming majority of Texas counties are considered mental health provider deserts and lack access to any mental health providers. A topic that I’m passionate in addressing, that I also feel does not receive enough attention, is the alarming rates of suicide among farmers and ranchers. Entrepreneurship has its challenges, and farmers have a particularly stressful occupation. Farmers tend to have increased levels of depression, anxiety, and a suicide rate that is more than double the national average. There are a million stressors on our farmers and ranchers, most of them made worse when our economy is not as strong. From natural disasters, historic droughts, financial uncertainty in the midst of trade disputes, tariff wars, and labor shortages, too often  things can seem hopeless.



Senate Priorities

My proposal to improve mental health care centers around increasing access and availability of mental health providers and resources across Texas. I will fight to deliver better outcomes by:

  • Establishing a permanent fund dedicated to rural healthcare that can be used to bring in more mental health treatment.

  • Boosting funding for recovery centers and chemical dependency treatment for opioids and substance abuse.

  • Requiring all major insurance providers to include full mental healthcare coverage, including prescription medications and therapies.

  • Providing student debt relief incentives for providers in high-need fields and enhanced incentives for those who practice in designated provider shortage areas for at least 5 years. 

  • Securing federal dollars for school districts to have a mental health counselor on every public school campus.

  • Increase support and funding for maternal mental health, including under Medicaid, to combat postpartum depression.

  • Tackle farmer suicide by reducing mental health stigma through resources specifically tailored to rural farmers, similar to the Farm State of Mind campaign conducted by the American Farm Bureau.

  • Targeted outreach, confidential hotlines, and peer support services so farmers can talk to someone in their own language. Community and connection is important for mental wellness and farm life can be very isolating at times.

  • Community awareness campaigns so that neighbors and loved ones know the signs, know what to look out for, how to respond, and how to connect the farmer they love with the resources that are needed.

  • Increasing the availability of beds in mental health treatment facilities as most in Texas are overcrowded and underfunded.

  • Boosting telehealth options and requiring they be covered equally by insurance. 

My Work in the United States Congress