Lifestyle

Killeen area residents are blessed with excellent medical facilities. In addition to a major hospital which is constantly on the grow, the area has two clinics, full-service mental health facilities, and many specialty physicians offering a wide range of care.

Metroplex Health System

Metroplex Health System is the primary healthcare provider for the greater Killeen area, offering a wide array of medical and wellness services The 202-bed, multi-campus facility is a not-for-profit Christian organization operated as a community service by the Adventist Health System, which manages more than 560 hospitals worldwide.

Metroplex has 950 employees and a medical staff of more than 120 physicians practicing in 34 specialties. The system includes Metroplex Hospital in Killeen; Rollins Brook Community Hospital in Lampasas; Metroplex Pavilion (a behavioral health facility for all ages) in Killeen; HomeCare (a home health facility) serving all of Central Texas; Advanced Imaging Center, featuring Open MRI, in Killeen; Metroplex Occupational Medicine Center in Killeen; MetroFlex Rehabilitation Center (offering adult physical, occupational and speech rehab) in Killeen; MetroKids Pediatric Rehabilitation Center (offering physical, occupational and speech rehab) in Killeen; and a Mobile Wellness Unit, which takes healthcare and education to people who might not otherwise be able to access it.

Metroplex Hospital offers a 24-hour emergency room, cardiac care equipment, general and same-day surgery suites, and maternity services. Its radiology department is equipped with advanced diagnostic imaging capabilities, including state-of-the-art Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), CT scans, nuclear medicine techniques, a cardiac-cath lab for diagnosing heart blockage and other heart-related problems, x-ray imaging, ultrasound and mammography. Metroplex also has an extensive on-site laboratory, pharmacy, cardio-pulmonary department and social services, as well as the Metroplex Cardiac Rehab Department and the Metroplex Sleep Disorders Center. The Metroplex Advanced Imaging Center in Killeen features the only open MRI between Austin and Waco. Open MRI is an alternative for claustrophobic or larger-sized patients and children.

Metroplex is located at 2201 S. Clear Creek Road in Killeen. For more information about services, or for a physician referral, call 254-519-8200 or visit www.mplex.org.

Visit the Metroplex Website

Darnall Army Community Hospital

Darnall Army Community Hospital is located at Fort Hood, and provides state-of-the-art medical care to active-duty and retired soldiers and their family members.

Within a 40-mile radius, Darnall serves approximately 141,000 military beneficiaries. Through the military health plan called TRICARE, about 100,000 are enrolled in Darnall's system of Family Care Clinics. Clinics are located on Fort Hood and in the surrounding communities of Killeen and Copperas Cove.

All healthcare is provided on an appointment basis by calling the Patient Appointment Service, 288-8888. Newcomers to the area who have existing medical problems that require immediate care should visit the One-Stop Center in the TRICARE Service Center, Building 36023, across from Darnall's parking area.

Darnall is one of three Army hospitals with an Emergency Medicine Residency Program. Darnall's Emergency Medicine Residents scored number 1 in the nation four years in a row on their in-training exams.

In July 2000, a Family Practice Residency Program was established at Darnall. Darnall also trains other residents in orthopedics, pediatrics, general surgery, obstetrics and psychiatry. The physician assistant internship program currently trains eight students per year. Darnall also has a training program for Nursing Anesthesia Phase II and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist.
Other Darnall Services

24-hour Emergency Room
Same Day Surgery/Laser Surgery
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and CAT Scan
Women's Health Center
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
On-Site Laboratory
Exceptional Family Member Program
Seven Pharmacies/PX/RX Pharmacy
Community Mental Health
Patient Representative/Advocate Office
Fisher House
Robertson Blood Bank
Four Family Health Clinics/Four Troop Medical Clinics
Chiropractic Clinics

Special Clinics and Hospitals

Scott and White Clinic

Located at 3901 Scott & White Blvd., the Scott & White Clinic, Killeen, has recently expanded to meet the needs of patients from Coryell, Lampasas and Bell counties. Opened in 1980, the clinic has a large staff in family practice medicine plus specialists in pediatrics and occupational medicine/workers' compensation.

The Killeen clinic is a part of the Scott & White Health Care System which is composed of a network of regional clinics, a 486-bed not-for-profit hospital in Temple and the not-for-profit Scott & White Health Plan.

In addition to the clinic in Killeen, Scott & White also operates the Scott & White Killeen Dialysis Center, 3701 Scott & White Blvd., and S&W OB/GYN Clinic, 3106 South W.S. Young Drive, as well as a Specialty Clinic at 2109 Clear Creek Road.

More information can be found by visiting their website.

King's Daughters Clinic

King's Daughters Clinic, a part of the King's Daughters Hospital in Temple, is located at 401 W. Jasper Drive in Killeen and has physicians in family practice, allergy and asthma, audiology and orthopedic surgery.

Cedar Crest Hospital and Residential Treatment Center
Cedar Crest is a private, non-profit organization providing a full range of behavioral healthcare and therapeutic education services to 'at risk' children and youth throughout Central Texas.

The main campus, alongside Interstate Highway 35 in Belton, houses a 20-bed acute hospital, a 50-bed residential treatment center and an accredited charter school program for children and adolescents, ages 4 to 18.

To meet the needs of patients in the least restrictive settings possible, the private, non-profit organization also can assess and treat patients in Killeen without a costly inpatient stay.

Further information can be obtained by visiting their website.

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The Killeen-Fort Hood Regional Airport is centrally located in the heart of Texas, adjacent to Fort Hood, and offers direct, non-stop air access to Dallas / Fort Worth, Houston and Atlanta airports.

Numerous four-lane highways also make travel to/from Austin, San Antonio, and Waco relatively simple and worry-free.

City of Killeen Aviation Services offers a variety of services for the airline traveler and the General Aviation community; to include four scheduled airlines and ample parking.

The Killeen-Fort Hood Regional Airport (GRK) and Skylark Field (ILE) offer general aviation services for corporate/business travelers and Skylark has aircraft tie-down spaces, fuel sales, aircraft rental, flight instruction, and other airport amenities.

Killeen itself has been on a phenomenal growth cycle for a number of years, now officially claiming 86,911 (2000 Census) residents in the city limits itself.

Neighboring Harker Heights (population 17,308), adjoining Killeen on the east, and Fort Hood, where more than 38,000 reside on the military reservation, swell the population of the area greatly.

Business growth also reflects the population growth. The rapid-growth area has been along superhighway U.S. 190, a corridor that, although filling rapidly, still has space for additional business development. A "restaurant row," with a number of nationally recognized eating establishments, has developed along a stretch of U.S. 190 from Stan Schlueter Loop to W.S. Young Drive. Other nationally known retail businesses have located in the area. These businesses, restaurants and a new, 14-screen movie theater complex are helping in the expansion of Killeen's trade area and have also helped Killeen become a regional shopping area.

Even with the rapid growth, there is still room for additional development and some retail space remains available in existing buildings. A plus for a would-be developer or someone seeking retail space for a new business is that rental rates in the fast-growing U.S. 190 corridor near Killeen Mall and Wal-Mart Superstore are running from $14 to $18 per square foot. Pad sites range from $6 to $12 per square foot in the same area, depending on exact location.

Although the U.S. 190 locations attract those businesses that need a high volume of traffic, there are approximately 20 other shopping and strip centers where businesses can be located. U.S. 190 is attractive because the traffic volume on that superhighway approaches 80,000 vehicles daily. Few cities outside major metropolitan areas approach these figures. This is the highest traffic count in Bell County, including Interstate Highway 35.

Texas has no personal or corporate income tax.  The main local and state taxes are:

1. Sales Tax - In Killeen, sales tax is 8.25%
2. Property Tax - Property taxes are relative to where you live.  Typically, you can expect to pay a tax rate of between 0.675 and 0.7 (See 2008 Tax Rate Chart)



Type	Killeen	Harker Heights
City	0.695	0.6796
Bell County	0.3779	0.3779
Killeen Independent School District	1.1412	1.1412
Central Texas College	0.141	0.141
Bell County Road District	0.0295	0.0295
Underground Water District	0.004	0.004
Total	2.3886	2.3732

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Contacts:

Bell County Tax Assesor

The Appraisal District of Bell County