New Mexico
NM High Court denies Indigenous groups’ attempt to block changes to PRC – Source New Mexico
The New Mexico Supreme Court docket on Monday denied a problem made on behalf of Indigenous teams that sought to dam a constitutional modification set to take impact subsequent yr.
New Mexico voters authorized a constitutional modification through the November 2020 election that modified membership on the state’s utility regulatory physique from being an elected place to 1 that’s appointed by the governor. It additionally shrinks the dimensions of the board from 5 members to a few.
A coalition of Indigenous teams requested the state’s highest court docket to dam the change earlier than it takes impact subsequent yr, arguing that the modification’s poll wording failed to satisfy accuracy and readability necessities.
Justices heard oral arguments Monday morning from attorneys representing the Workplace of the Governor and the Workplace of the Legal professional Normal, in addition to Sarah Shore, an legal professional who filed the petition on behalf of the Indigenous teams. The case centered on whether or not voters understood the wording of the poll language, and whether or not they understood they’d be giving up the best to elect folks to the Public Regulation Fee.
Shore argued on behalf of three Indigenous girls’s teams — Indigenous Lifeways, New Mexico Social Justice & Fairness Institute and Three Sisters Collective. She stated that the poll language was deceptive and that as a result of the modification adjustments how commissioners are chosen and likewise adjustments the dimensions of the board, voters ought to have been allowed to resolve every merchandise individually.
Following arguments, the court docket recessed for about half-hour earlier than denying Shore’s writ of mandamus, a court docket order that may have blocked the constitutional modification.
“The court docket has concluded that it’s applicable to disclaim the writ,” Chief Justice C. Shannon Bacon stated. “An opinion will observe, explaining our rationale.”
Monday’s resolution was delivered due to the time-sensitive nature of the matter, Bacon stated. It could possibly be weeks till the court docket’s written opinion is issued although.
Indigenous teams say adjustments to utility regulation in NM would favor vitality firms
New Mexico voters authorized the modification by a 56% to 44% margin in 2020. The modification is about to take impact Jan. 1.
The teams represented by Shore expressed considerations that an appointed PRC board would favor the needs of vitality firms over defending sacred land and the Indigenous individuals who inhabit it, and that the poll initiative is an try to silence Native folks by giving vitality firms unfettered affect over the PRC.
Shore stated she was disenchanted by the court docket’s ruling as a result of it exposes Indigenous folks to the doubtless dire penalties of elevated political and monetary affect on the company making selections about important companies that each New Mexican is dependent upon.
“We felt like we had actually well-grounded authorized arguments, and that the rights at stake have been essential, so we have been disenchanted that the court docket didn’t take a better have a look at this,” she stated. “It places my purchasers again within the place of getting to advocate within the Legislature, regardless that we expect, as a matter of legislation, the Legislature unconstitutionally eliminated these rights from them.”
Krystal Curley, government director of Indigenous Lifeways, stated it was disheartening to proceed to carry this burden from technology to technology.
We are going to as soon as once more be pressured to retraumatize ourselves again and again, retelling the story of the abuse and despoilment of our well being and our land by the extractive vitality firms which have colonized our land for many years.
– Krystal Curley, government director of Indigenous Lifeways
“What little illustration we had was taken away from us in a misleading method,” she stated.
The constitutional modification started as bipartisan laws in 2019 that was co-sponsored by Senate Majority Chief Peter Wirth, a Democrat from Santa Fe. In an interview Monday, Wirth stated he thought the Supreme Court docket made the best resolution.
“Given how far down the street we’re within the course of, given the overwhelming help for this proposal initially within the Legislature and provided that the voters adopted it, I believe it’s the best resolution made at present,” he stated.
Wirth stated a key impetus behind the unique laws was to cut back makes an attempt by exterior teams to affect the fee by funding PRC commissioner’s campaigns.
“We’ve seen increasingly exterior cash being poured into the PRC race, and so we tried to strike the best steadiness right here,” he stated.
As a result of serving on the PRC requires a sure stage of technical experience, Wirth stated having the governor choose candidates from a listing of certified folks will strengthen the fee. And by having the positions appointed, he feels a much bigger pool of well-qualified folks might be keen to serve on the board.
“Politicians are good at getting elected, however that doesn’t translate, essentially, into being the perfect regulator,” Wirth stated. “The purpose is to get the PRC out of the political course of.”
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We’re going to see a more active day in New Mexico after a dry Fourth of July. See the latest conditions at KOB.com/Weather.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Gusty canyon winds will die down Friday afternoon but some strong to severe storms will start to pop up at that point.
Those storms are possible in southeastern New Mexico. Hail and damaging winds are the main concern.
Elsewhere, we will stay mostly dry and more seasonably warm. Santa Fe, Las Vegas, Tucumcari and Angel Fire could see a chance of rain and storms.
Another chance of rain and storms is possible next week.
Meteorologist Kira Miner shares all the details in her full forecast in the video above.
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New Mexico
Fewer beds and smaller earnings will hurt New Mexico hospitals as new state law goes into effect • Source New Mexico
Smaller New Mexico hospitals will soon start missing out on government funding due to their fewer number of beds and smaller financial performance.
Senate Bill 17 signed into law earlier this year is set to go into effect this summer, redefining how the state calculates its portion of the Medicaid match for hospitals. The Healthcare Quality Delivery and Access Act establishes that 60% of the state’s match is based on “Medicaid service volume” or beds while 40% is based on performance, which is determined by the Health Care Authority based on reports from the hospitals.
“Ultimately, the bill aims to improve and increase access to healthcare services within the state. However, hospitals that do not have significant Medicaid service volume will not see much benefit,” reads a Legislative Finance Committee report.
According to the report, smaller hospitals with fewer beds care for fewer Medicaid patients, compared to bigger hospitals with a larger capacity to treat Medicaid patients.
“Given the structure of the act, hospitals most at risk of down-sizing may not see much benefit. Generally speaking, hospitals that are not fiscally-challenged will receive the bulk of the financial aid based on bed count,” the report reads. “Ultimately, the act does not target hospitals that are financially struggling, and instead helps larger hospitals which are generally already profitable.”
The LFC report uses Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital in Gallup as an example. The smaller hospital lost around $20 million in 2022 and will receive about $6.5 million from the new law.
Rehoboth has made headlines recently by being ordered to pay over $100 million in medical malpractice damages. The civil case was filed in 2019 following a patient’s botched hernia surgery left them with life-long complications.
Gallup hospital says it is ‘indigent’ ahead of court order to find more than $100M
“This will not cover the full extent of the losses that Rehoboth faces and they will still have a negative net margin of more than $13 million,” the LFC report reads.
On the other hand, the larger Eastern New Mexico Medical Center reported a profit of about $80 million in 2022 and will receive over $37 million from the law. The report said if the Roswell hospital’s earnings remain on track, it could see over $117 million in combined profits and matched funding from the state.
Twelve New Mexico hospitals which qualify for funding under the new law reported net losses in 2022. Four of them will not receive enough state match funding to turn a profit. These include Rehoboth, Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque, Santa Fe Medical Center, and Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Albuquerque.
In Southern New Mexico, Artesia General Hospital reported a nearly $3 million loss in 2022 and is only projected to receive $5.6 million in match funding. The hospital will be profitable at $2.7 million, which is low compared to other larger hospitals in the region.
The report also noted that public funds made up about 70% of total hospital revenue in 2022 and this number is projected to reach 74% by 2025. These include funding from Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare Advantage and state subsidies.
“As the state continues to increase hospital subsidies, New Mexico is in a unique position to ensure hospitals use their revenue to improve patients’ outcomes and access to healthcare,” the report reads.
During a Legislative Health & Human Services Committee meeting this week, Rep. Tara Lujan (D-Santa Fe) said the report raised several “red flags” for the lawmakers.
“We don’t always have all the answers when we come up with legislation. But I knew that we worked together with institutions, with legislators, with the executive office particularly on this bill,” Lujan said. “It looks like we need to make some adjustments.”
When asked by Rep. Pamelya Herndon (D-Albuquerque) about solutions the legislature should consider, LFC Analyst Allegra Hernandez said lawmakers need to make sure there are measures in place to hold hospitals accountable, and to improve care.
She added that the goal should be to make sure New Mexico hospitals are in a financially “healthier place” in five years, and that she does not believe Senate Bill 17, as it is currently written, will do that.
Hernandez offered one solution – the rural emergency hospital designation through Medicare. This designation was established through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 by Congress. The idea is that smaller, often rural hospitals would transition to become a rural emergency hospital and only offer emergency care to patients. This would limit access to broader services for patients seeking care.
“The rural emergency designation possible by (Medicare) is one potential answer, although it’s not necessarily the most popular answer as it would close hospital beds and only allow for emergency services,” Hernandez said.
Hospitals that choose to transition to this designation would receive another 5% in Medicare funds and a monthly facility payment of about $272,000. According to the LFC report, Guadalupe County Hospital is the only hospital in the state that has chosen to make this transition.
“The state and hospitals will likely need to continue to make difficult decisions about when it is necessary to close hospitals or sections of hospitals,” Hernandez said. “(The rural emergency designation) is an option, although, as I said, it is controversial,” Hernandez said.
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