02/16/2026
Long one but it’s important. The fight for healthcare is gaining steam!
New Mexico House Bill 99 passed the house with overwhelming bipartisan support. That’s a huge win but we don’t want th ereform to die as a moral victory. Now, it’s on to the senate where the fight will be harder. And it’s going to happen fast. There are only a few days left in this year’s session and the opposition is fighting like hell to ensure they won’t lose ground in their litigious haven that New Mexico has become.
House Bill 99 is not perfect but it’s a big step. We must ensure that it keeps moving forward and that it isn’t further diluted by misinformed or mal-intentioned amendments by politicians who sue doctors during their day jobs or whose campaigns are largely funded by those trial attorneys.
Voices of support are coming from all New Mexicans, across party lines, who see that they are losing doctors and that their neighbors, especially the least economically privledged among them, struggle to access care. The vast majority of the loudest community voices opposing reform are intimately tied to “Safety Over Profit,” a group that was sued by the NM Ethics Commission for refusing to disclose donors. When forced to reveal them, the donors turned out to be trial lawyers and the NM Trial Lawyers Association.
Meanwhile according to a state sponsored survey:
- 65% of NM physicians are considering leaving the state
- 83% say malpractice laws are the main reason
- Punitive damages are claimed in 92% of NM malpractice cases
- NM has no cap on punitive damages and one of the lowest standards of proof
HB 99 can help the journey to restoring balance by capping punitive damages for all providers while still protecting small and mid-sized practices, amending occurrence definition, and reforming payouts of the patient compensation, designed to help patients with medical expenses after an injury.
Every doctor acknowledges wholeheartedly that patients have the right seek justice when they are victims of malpractice. But unlimited punitive exposure and a malpractice environment that is out of sync with surrounding states is driving your doctors out and shrinking an already abysmal state of access to care.
It’s time for real reform. We are all driving out the din of rhetorical misinformation with our desperation for a functional healthcare system.
Call your ALL your senators, especially those on the Senate Health Committee (https://www.nmlegis.gov/Committee/Standing_Committee?CommitteeCode=SHPAC) and Senate Judiciary Committee (https://www.nmlegis.gov/Committee/Standing_Committee?CommitteeCode=SJC) IMMEDIATELY to support HB 99 in its current form.
Also, Patients Primero is doing a great job of keeping the public up to date on these issues. Add your name to their list by sending them an email at patientsprimero@gmail.com.
