In Sunday’s Albuquerque Journal two stories highlighted the self-inflicted policy issue that are pushing doctors out of New Mexico. You can see the articles for yourself here and here along with a telling chart below.
The stories echoed RGF’s solutions which include addressing the medical malpractice bill passed a few years ago, reducing Medicaid dependency, and eliminating GRT taxation of medical services (as we pointed out in a new report).
One of the challenging aspects of policies like the medical malpractice bill (HB 75 in 2021) is that it was a “compromise.” Trial attorneys and Democrats were pushing even worse legislation on the issue, so final passage of the bill attracted support from numerous GOP senators (you can find out who at the link).
New Mexico’s problems (like nearly all of them) are driven by bad public policy. But until voters hold the politicians accountable for their bad policies, we will continue to get more of them.
It is like the Democrats in this small and poor state do not think any of their bad policies will ever affect them or their families. They shoot themselves in the foot and wonder why it hurts. We old folk are going to have to move just to get health care….the care being absorbed by non-paying illegals and others.