Leo Gomez

Waterloo Counseling Center to become a program of Texas Health Action

Today, the Austin nonprofit Texas Health Action (THA), announced its new vision to provide affordable, high-quality integrated sexual and behavioral health services in 2021. Waterloo Counseling Center, a local nonprofit provider of counseling services, will become a program of Texas Health Action alongside its established program Kind Clinic, which provides sexual healthcare.

The announcement comes after affirmative votes from both boards of directors. The announcement builds upon an existing partnership that currently offers low-cost mental health counseling from Waterloo Counseling Center for Kind Clinic patients.

Texas Health Action will host virtual town halls for Waterloo Counseling Center clients, Kind Clinic patients and community members on Sept. 14 and 16. The community is invited to ask questions and offer feedback to inform the integration of services.

Local activists founded Waterloo Counseling Center in 1983 to provide mental health services for the LGBTQIA+ community, people living with HIV/AIDS and their loved ones. Services now include counseling for people experiencing trauma, depression or anxiety.

Similarly, Texas Health Action formed after a small team of passionate community members and providers combined forces to open Austin’s first clinic focusing on the HIV prevention medication known as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) for LGBTQIA+ people and their allies. That clinic, now known as Kind Clinic, offers sexual health services including access to PrEP, HIV-related care, STI testing and treatment, and gender-affirming care.

Waterloo Counseling Center will retain its name after officially becoming a program of a Texas Health Action and will continue to offer its services from their current location in North Austin or through telehealth appointments.

The exploration of this integration was made possible in part by The Austin Together Fund, which was created from the idea that nonprofit organizations in Central Texas could reach more people in need with stronger services and increased efficiency. Read more at AustinTogetherFund.org.

For more information about counseling services at Waterloo Counseling Center, visit WaterlooCounseling.org.

For more information about sexual health services at Kind Clinic, visit KindClinic.org

Media Contacts:

Kat Griffith or Laura Bowman
kgriffith@echristianpr.com, 512-797-4002
lbowman@echristianpr.com, 512-913-6624

Elizabeth Christian Public Relations