How to start an IOP or PHP in Beaumont–Port Arthur

Beaumont–Port Arthur at a glance

Question	The Golden Triangle's answer
State license	HHSC chemical dependency treatment facility license, per site (26 TAC 564)
Medicaid service area	Jefferson: Chambers, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, Polk, San Jacinto, Tyler, Walker
STAR plans	Community Health Choice, Molina, Texas Children's Health Plan, UnitedHealthcare, Wellpoint
STAR+PLUS plans	Molina, Wellpoint
Local mental health authority	Spindletop Center (Chambers, Hardin, Jefferson and Orange counties)
Permits and certificate of occupancy	City of Beaumont zoning office and Building Codes (City Hall, 2nd floor); Port Arthur, Orange and Nederland have their own
Local watch-outs	Windstorm certification, flood zones, hurricane season, shift-work schedules, plant workers on self-funded employer plans

Plans from HHSC's managed care service areas map (revised August 2026) and the STAR+PLUS awards that took effect September 1, 2024; counties from HHSC's Jefferson comparison chart. "Tyler" here is Tyler County, not the city of Tyler, which is in a different service area (see our Tyler guide).

The license is statewide

HHSC licenses Texas substance use programs as chemical dependency treatment facilities under Health and Safety Code chapter 464 and 26 TAC 564; no Golden Triangle city adds a treatment license. As of October 2026 the fee under 26 TAC 564.408 is $1,200 plus $125 per additional site, so a Beaumont program that adds a Port Arthur site licenses both. The packet is in our CDTF license guide, the proof list in 26 TAC 564 in plain English, and the whole sequence in how to start an IOP or PHP in Texas. Write storm closures and telehealth continuation into your policies alongside the medical and psychiatric emergency procedures 564.707 already requires.

Beaumont's permit process, step by step

The City of Beaumont spells out its process on its new business requirements page and its commercial construction checklist. As of October 2026:

Step	What Beaumont says
1. Zoning	Contact the zoning office ([email protected], 409-880-3100) to confirm the location is zoned for your type of business, before you lease.
2. Pre-development meeting	Free, every Thursday at 9, 10 and 11 a.m., with the city's reviewers in the room. Bring the address and a floor plan.
3a. Move-in-ready space	Apply for the certificate of occupancy online. The fee is $125 and covers the required safety inspections.
3b. Build-out	Permits from the Building Codes office on the 2nd floor of City Hall; commercial permits go only to bonded, registered contractors. The city's adopted codes, with local amendments, took effect April 5, 2023.
4. Extra items on the checklist	Windstorm certification by a Texas registered engineer for exterior work, and TDLR accessibility registration (a TABS number) for projects valued at $50,000 or more.

Under the city code, a building can't be occupied or changed in use until the certificate of occupancy is issued. Group rooms raise the occupant load, so describe your use precisely at the pre-development meeting and ask:

1. Is an outpatient substance use treatment program allowed in this zoning district?
2. Is our move-in a change of use, and can we use the online certificate of occupancy?
3. Does our build-out trigger windstorm certification or TDLR registration?
4. What will the fire marshal check before we open?

Port Arthur, Orange, Nederland, Port Neches and Groves each run their own permits. Lease with a contingency for the certificate of occupancy and the license; every site step is on our Texas IOP opening checklist.

Windstorm, flood and hurricane planning

• Windstorm certification. Jefferson and Chambers counties are in TDI's designated catastrophe area, where most new construction, roof work, major repairs and alterations need inspection by a TDI-appointed engineer and a certificate of compliance (WPI-8) (TDI windstorm inspections). Without it, the building may not qualify for wind and hail coverage from the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association. Ask the landlord for the building's certificates.
• Flood zones. Much of the Golden Triangle is low and flat. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, ask the landlord whether the building has flooded, and price flood insurance before you sign.
• Hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30. Plan closures, client contact, telehealth continuation within 26 TAC 564.911's consent and identity rules, and reopening. Comply's emergency operations plan guide and hazard vulnerability analysis cover both, and a browser-based EHR such as Cima EHR for IOP and PHP keeps charts reachable when the building isn't.

Medicaid plans in the Jefferson service area

After the HHSC license, enroll with TMHP, then credential with each plan. TMHP has said Medicaid SUD treatment may only be delivered in a licensed chemical dependency treatment facility (TMHP notice).

Program	Who it covers	Plans in the Jefferson service area
STAR	Most children, pregnant women and some families	Community Health Choice, Molina, Texas Children's, UnitedHealthcare, Wellpoint
STAR+PLUS	Adults with disabilities and adults 65 and older	Molina, Wellpoint
CHIP	Children in families above Medicaid income	The same five as STAR

• Molina and Wellpoint cover both adult programs. Each is listed in STAR and STAR+PLUS, so an adult program can start with those two. UnitedHealthcare's 2026 manual doesn't list Jefferson for STAR+PLUS. Our guides: Molina and Wellpoint Texas.
• Houston-based plans reach here. Community Health Choice and Texas Children's Health Plan serve the Jefferson area as well as Harris, so a program with sites in both can use one relationship. See our Community Health Choice guide and the Houston city guide.
• Five STAR plans is a lot. For an adult program, STAR matters mainly for pregnant women and some parents. Pick by who your referral sources' patients carry rather than applying to all five at once.

The process is in our Texas Medicaid credentialing guide, and every area is in Texas Medicaid health plans by service area. Our credentialing service files and follows each application.

The local landscape

Earn referrals with quick assessments and honest updates. Paying or giving anything of value for referrals is illegal under the Texas Patient Solicitation Act and EKRA (patient brokering laws, explained). We never arrange referrals.

• Spindletop Center is the local mental health and IDD authority for Chambers, Hardin, Jefferson and Orange counties (HHSC LMHA directory), and it runs its own outpatient substance use services. Agree on crisis hand-offs, and know when a client belongs there.
• OSAR. HHSC's Outreach, Screening, Assessment and Referral programs link people to state-funded substance use treatment; find the provider for your region on HHSC's OSAR page.
• Employers and EAPs. Refineries and plants run shifts, and many large employers self-fund their health plans through a national carrier, with behavioral health sometimes carved out. Offer evening and rotating-shift tracks, and verify every plan's benefits and prior authorization; our sister site's prior authorization guide and carve-out guide explain both.
• Hospitals. The Beaumont and Port Arthur hospital systems discharge patients who need a step down; case managers want your levels of care, accepted plans and assessment times.
• Courts and probation. If the county runs a drug court or other specialty court under Government Code chapter 123, reports go only with the client's consent under 42 CFR Part 2.

Legal marketing is in how to market a treatment center.

The order of work

Step	Golden Triangle detail	Typical time in our roadmap
1. Program model and budget	Levels of care, a shift-friendly schedule, payers. Run the break-even calculator.	1–2 months
2. Site search	Zoning office first; flood zone; windstorm certificates; a Thursday pre-development meeting	about 30 days
3. Lease with a contingency	Out if the certificate of occupancy or license fails; free rent for the build-out	about 3 weeks
4. Build-out	Bonded, registered contractor; windstorm engineer for exterior work; TDLR registration at $50,000+	about 6 weeks
5. Certificate of occupancy and fire inspection	Online $125 application if you didn't build; keep copies for HHSC	about 3 weeks
6. HHSC license and inspection	The statewide process, storm procedures in the policy manual	about 2–3 months
7. Facility contracts	TMHP, then Molina and Wellpoint, other STAR plans as needed, and commercial plans	about 90 days each

The times are the planning figures in our own launch roadmap, not promises. On that roadmap the first admission comes about 6 months after kickoff. Costs are in how much it costs to start an IOP.

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Questions

Which Medicaid plans serve Beaumont and Port Arthur?

HHSC's August 2026 map lists Community Health Choice, Molina, Texas Children's, UnitedHealthcare and Wellpoint for STAR, and Molina and Wellpoint for STAR+PLUS, in the 11-county Jefferson service area.

How much is a certificate of occupancy in Beaumont?

For a move-in-ready space, the City of Beaumont says you can apply online and the fee is $125, which covers the required safety inspections. A build-out goes through Building Codes permits instead. Confirm the current fee with the city.

Who is the local mental health authority in Beaumont?

Spindletop Center, for Chambers, Hardin, Jefferson and Orange counties.

Do I need windstorm certification in Beaumont?

For exterior work, the city's commercial checklist calls for windstorm certification by a Texas registered engineer, and Jefferson County is in TDI's windstorm program. Interior-only work may not need it; ask at the pre-development meeting.

How long does it take to open an IOP in Beaumont?

Plan on nine to twelve months to a full caseload of insured clients. The city's process is quick to learn; credentialing is the long pole.

Other Texas cities: Houston, Corpus Christi, Tyler, and every city on opening a program in Texas, by city.

Cima Consulting isn't a law or accounting firm. HHSC, the city, TDI and each health plan make their own decisions; we don't guarantee approvals, rates or dates.

Sources

• HHSC, Managed Care Service Areas map (revised August 2026): hhs.texas.gov; STAR comparison charts: hhs.texas.gov; STAR+PLUS contract awards: hhs.texas.gov
• Texas Children's Health Plan, STAR: texaschildrenshealthplan.org; UnitedHealthcare 2026 Texas provider quick reference: uhcprovider.com
• City of Beaumont, new business requirements: beaumonttexas.gov; commercial construction checklist: beaumonttexas.gov; adopted building codes: beaumonttexas.gov
• Texas Department of Insurance, windstorm inspections: tdi.texas.gov; FEMA Flood Map Service Center: msc.fema.gov
• HHSC, local mental health authority directory: resources.hhs.texas.gov; Spindletop Center profile: guidestar.org; OSAR: hhs.texas.gov
• Texas Health and Safety Code chapter 464: statutes.capitol.texas.gov; 26 TAC 564.408: justia.com; TMHP SUD notice: tmhp.com
• Texas Occupations Code chapter 102: statutes.capitol.texas.gov; EKRA: law.cornell.edu; Government Code chapter 123: statutes.capitol.texas.gov; 42 CFR Part 2: ecfr.gov