Three immediate things need to change to improve healthcare access in New Mexico: 1 Lower the malpractice caps - NM's are some of the highest in the country and the associated premiums are triple the rates of neighboring states. 2 End the 8% tax on doctor visits. Only one other state applies this and it is Hawaii. 3 Improve medicaid reimbursement In the longer term, improvements in education and crime would help to recruit young doctors, nurses, nurse practitioner and CRNAs. In the meantime, 700 primary care doctors have left in the last 4 years. While the problem is long standing, it has gotten much much worse lately, and the recent medical malpractice caps are a devastating tipping point. Every day we hear of new stories of good doctors leaving to neighboring states. In the end, New Mexicans suffer. - Trent Taylor, MD
Yes, the Dr. shortage existed before this new "fix." At the same time, we - as a State - have not increased business growth, we have seen small and middle size businesses either go out of business or drastically cut back on locations and hours. With this we are hurting the potential for growth for our economy and the opportunities for both employees and employers to create new, meaningful and substantive businesses and jobs. The business and cultural elites that run New Mexico are not hurt by this current state of affairs; indeed, they continue to benefit from it. The lower and middle class were really hurt by the pandemic lockdowns. When we drive down any major street or go into any mall or go to a car lot, we see the empty spaces that used to be filled. We have de factor health care rationing. While we have good Dr.'s, PA's and RN's here, we shouldn't penalize them for practicing their craft here. We need them here. My wife is much healthier than she used to be, however, she is still chronically ill. It took us 6 months to get an appointment with a Cardiologist and a Pulmonary MD. Come on, Legislature! Both houses and the Governorship are controlled by Democrat party. That SHOULD lead to a easier and more streamlined process to develop and implement constructive, reasonable and cost effective solutions to the health care worker shortage and the insurance problem.
So this is perfect example of how a Democrat run state government, takes on a already existing problem, and passes laws that actual make the situation far worse. Instead of saying, what can we do to retain our physicians and other health providers and actually encourage some to move here to practice from other states-lets make our malpractice costs even higher..that’ll make em want to stay or come here🤡. Witness the same carnage in Kommiefornia where for the first time, EVER, the population of the state went DOWN- and they lost Congressional seats. And the same Democrat intelligensia double down on more of the same. So dont be surprised if more older and elderly citizens vacate the state of New Mexico to move to a state where they can actually access good medical care-especially to Texas where there is also NO state income tax. Just be sure to remember when you have finally had enough of Democrats running your state into oblivion and finally move to Red state-don’t keep making the same mistake of voting for the same Democrat clowns who ruined the place you left.
I love New Mexico for the scenery, people, and culture, but their state gov. leaves a lot to be desired. The state gov. can mess up a good thing. I understand their asset forfeiture practice is so prevalent that it is baked into the state's budget. When I visit New Mexico I limit the amount of cash I carry to prevent the police from stealing it.
My eye Dr at UNM just told me she's moving to Texas next month. After realizing that my eyes will require surgery and corneal transplants, it's hard to talk about what it's like getting over that incredible fear, let alone see that now a Dr I have never met may be the one doing the procedures. Patients who require specialized care and then surgery, such as heart transplants, will find that it can't be done here in NM and must go to another state. The costs that the patient must be ready for include flight, hotel, and other living expenses not only for themselves but for the required caregiver who must be there for months. Then, flying back to that hospital every month for follow ups. I know this personally because my son has stage 4 heart failure and I took him to Mayo Clinic, using my retirement to cover the costs. We await transplant and that alone requires a $20,000 co pay from the patient. There are many more costs that the working people have been burdened to bear. Retaining qualified and skilled physicians here in NM is a critical concern.
Doctors still have a choice. They are not yet slaves of the State. Treat them like sh*t and they will leave. Just the fact that NM passed the law taking away the limit on Malpractice liability tells me that the State Legislature is controlled by trial lawyers. Who would want to practice under those conditions: one conviction can take away every dime you have ever and will ever earn... BTW: you don't have to f*ck up to lose a lawsuit: in one study Doctors win ONLY 78% of lawsuits where they did meet the standard of care. When they did not meet that standard, they win 50%. What can they do to get more Physicians? One source is old and retired Physicians. Right now no Physician over the age of 65 can get a job. Despite loud denial of ageism, hospitals will not hire older Doctors. I applied for 225 jobs and got zero offers, even though I have a clean record, never having been sanctioned by the Board of Medicine and never having been sued. Also. all hospitals have the idea that if you have not practiced for 1-2 years you forgot all you know about your specialty and you are not allowed to practice. Do you think I would forget how to do an anesthetic after doing 25,000 in my career? Do you think a Radiologist would forget how to read a chest x-ray after reading 250,000? So, say you have a medical problem, like cancer. You have radiation and chemo for a year and you feel like sh*t for another but are cured and recover. You are not allowed to go back to work even though you need to because your expenses have eaten heavily into your retirement funds, because you are now "impaired" by the very furlough that saved your life As far as I'm concerned, NM can ESAD.
Presbyterian Hospital on CentralAvenue in downtown Albuquerque has a very nice main entrance and reception area. One of the very first contacts for a visitor such as me, is a very large space for Financial Assistance. 😂 Nearby, is a large, stylized wall sign showing names and professional degrees of personnel affiliated or presumably practitioners at Presbyterian. The sign also denotes, with an asterisk next to at least half of the expansive list, “Deceased”. My ‘takeaway lesson’? This wall sign beautifully summarizes the conditions present in New Mexico medicine. 🦇
My new doctors here don't even speak English fluently enough for me to be able to understand them when they speak to me. Do I need to learn all of their different languages in order to receive healthcare in the future? How many and which languages? Because they aren't interested in learning mine. Spanish, English, French... Should we all just go back to LATIN in the healthcare industry? That makes more sense in many ways to me!
Let's talk all about doctors, but...let's not include any doctors in the discussion. This panel is actually part of the problem, but they don't realize it. "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions."
Why isn't there representation from Advance Practice Registered Nurses/Certified Nurse Practitioners at the table to discuss these issues. Please STOP using the term "MIDLEVEL PROVIDER" in reference to APRNs/CNPs providers. In the state of New Mexico we are granted as licensed as independent health care providers with full scope of practice and unrestricted prescriptive authority (according to our area of subject national certification); meaning we are not under the supervision of physicians. The American Association of Nurse Practitioner (AANP) issued a revised 2022 Position Statement that states: The use of terms such as mid-level provider and physician extender in reference to nurse practitioners (NPs) individually, or to an aggregate inclusive of NPs, is inaccurate and misleading. The American Association of Nurse Practitioners® (AANP) calls for the retirement of these inaccurate terms and endorses referring to NPs by their title. Click link below to read the full statement by the AANP. storage.aanp.org/www/documents/advocacy/position-papers/Useofterms.pdf?_gl=1*1g57s6w*_gcl_au*MTExMTA0MjYzLjE2ODkzNTgxMDc.
Three immediate things need to change to improve healthcare access in New Mexico:
1 Lower the malpractice caps - NM's are some of the highest in the country and the associated premiums are triple the rates of neighboring states.
2 End the 8% tax on doctor visits. Only one other state applies this and it is Hawaii.
3 Improve medicaid reimbursement
In the longer term, improvements in education and crime would help to recruit young doctors, nurses, nurse practitioner and CRNAs.
In the meantime, 700 primary care doctors have left in the last 4 years. While the problem is long standing, it has gotten much much worse lately, and the recent medical malpractice caps are a devastating tipping point. Every day we hear of new stories of good doctors leaving to neighboring states. In the end, New Mexicans suffer.
- Trent Taylor, MD
This is happening all over both the US and Canada as both health care workers and teachers are getting screwed big time.
Yes, the Dr. shortage existed before this new "fix." At the same time, we - as a State - have not increased business growth, we have seen small and middle size businesses either go out of business or drastically cut back on locations and hours. With this we are hurting the potential for growth for our economy and the opportunities for both employees and employers to create new, meaningful and substantive businesses and jobs. The business and cultural elites that run New Mexico are not hurt by this current state of affairs; indeed, they continue to benefit from it. The lower and middle class were really hurt by the pandemic lockdowns. When we drive down any major street or go into any mall or go to a car lot, we see the empty spaces that used to be filled.
We have de factor health care rationing. While we have good Dr.'s, PA's and RN's here, we shouldn't penalize them for practicing their craft here. We need them here. My wife is much healthier than she used to be, however, she is still chronically ill. It took us 6 months to get an appointment with a Cardiologist and a Pulmonary MD.
Come on, Legislature! Both houses and the Governorship are controlled by Democrat party. That SHOULD lead to a easier and more streamlined process to develop and implement constructive, reasonable and cost effective solutions to the health care worker shortage and the insurance problem.
They've always been short of doctors, but then they went ahead and made it more difficult to practice there? Makes complete sense.
Why no doctors on this panel giving their input? Bunch of talking heads
So this is perfect example of how a Democrat run state government, takes on a already existing problem, and passes laws that actual make the situation far worse. Instead of saying, what can we do to retain our physicians and other health providers and actually encourage some to move here to practice from other states-lets make our malpractice costs even higher..that’ll make em want to stay or come here🤡. Witness the same carnage in Kommiefornia where for the first time, EVER, the population of the state went DOWN- and they lost Congressional seats. And the same Democrat intelligensia double down on more of the same. So dont be surprised if more older and elderly citizens vacate the state of New Mexico to move to a state where they can actually access good medical care-especially to Texas where there is also NO state income tax. Just be sure to remember when you have finally had enough of Democrats running your state into oblivion and finally move to Red state-don’t keep making the same mistake of voting for the same Democrat clowns who ruined the place you left.
I love New Mexico for the scenery, people, and culture, but their state gov. leaves a lot to be desired. The state gov. can mess up a good thing. I understand their asset forfeiture practice is so prevalent that it is baked into the state's budget. When I visit New Mexico I limit the amount of cash I carry to prevent the police from stealing it.
So glad I moved away from NM recently. The only things I miss are the weather, the mountains, and the chili.
Republican-led states are losing doctors too (eg.: Idaho) due mainly to draconian anti-abortion laws.
My eye Dr at UNM just told me she's moving to Texas next month. After realizing that my eyes will require surgery and corneal transplants, it's hard to talk about what it's like getting over that incredible fear, let alone see that now a Dr I have never met may be the one doing the procedures. Patients who require specialized care and then surgery, such as heart transplants, will find that it can't be done here in NM and must go to another state. The costs that the patient must be ready for include flight, hotel, and other living expenses not only for themselves but for the required caregiver who must be there for months. Then, flying back to that hospital every month for follow ups. I know this personally because my son has stage 4 heart failure and I took him to Mayo Clinic, using my retirement to cover the costs. We await transplant and that alone requires a $20,000 co pay from the patient. There are many more costs that the working people have been burdened to bear. Retaining qualified and skilled physicians here in NM is a critical concern.
Doctors still have a choice. They are not yet slaves of the State. Treat them like sh*t and they will leave. Just the fact that NM passed the law taking away the limit on Malpractice liability tells me that the State Legislature is controlled by trial lawyers. Who would want to practice under those conditions: one conviction can take away every dime you have ever and will ever earn... BTW: you don't have to f*ck up to lose a lawsuit: in one study Doctors win ONLY 78% of lawsuits where they did meet the standard of care. When they did not meet that standard, they win 50%.
What can they do to get more Physicians? One source is old and retired Physicians. Right now no Physician over the age of 65 can get a job. Despite loud denial of ageism, hospitals will not hire older Doctors. I applied for 225 jobs and got zero offers, even though I have a clean record, never having been sanctioned by the Board of Medicine and never having been sued.
Also. all hospitals have the idea that if you have not practiced for 1-2 years you forgot all you know about your specialty and you are not allowed to practice. Do you think I would forget how to do an anesthetic after doing 25,000 in my career? Do you think a Radiologist would forget how to read a chest x-ray after reading 250,000?
So, say you have a medical problem, like cancer. You have radiation and chemo for a year and you feel like sh*t for another but are cured and recover. You are not allowed to go back to work even though you need to because your expenses have eaten heavily into your retirement funds, because you are now "impaired" by the very furlough that saved your life
As far as I'm concerned, NM can ESAD.
Presbyterian Hospital on CentralAvenue in downtown Albuquerque has a very nice main entrance and reception area. One of the very first contacts for a visitor such as me, is a very large space for Financial Assistance. 😂 Nearby, is a large, stylized wall sign showing names and professional degrees of personnel affiliated or presumably practitioners at Presbyterian. The sign also denotes, with an asterisk next to at least half of the expansive list, “Deceased”. My ‘takeaway lesson’? This wall sign beautifully summarizes the conditions present in New Mexico medicine. 🦇
I’m a UNM graduate. I so desperately want to return someday. However, I can’t do it in the current atmosphere.
My new doctors here don't even speak English fluently enough for me to be able to understand them when they speak to me. Do I need to learn all of their different languages in order to receive healthcare in the future? How many and which languages? Because they aren't interested in learning mine. Spanish, English, French... Should we all just go back to LATIN in the healthcare industry? That makes more sense in many ways to me!
I learned new things today..."militate against" and that it is called a "phrasal verb".
Let's talk all about doctors, but...let's not include any doctors in the discussion.
This panel is actually part of the problem, but they don't realize it.
"The road to Hell is paved with good intentions."
clueless
Be better doctors
Why isn't there representation from Advance Practice Registered Nurses/Certified Nurse Practitioners at the table to discuss these issues. Please STOP using the term "MIDLEVEL PROVIDER" in reference to APRNs/CNPs providers. In the state of New Mexico we are granted as licensed as independent health care providers with full scope of practice and unrestricted prescriptive authority (according to our area of subject national certification); meaning we are not under the supervision of physicians.
The American Association of Nurse Practitioner (AANP) issued a revised 2022 Position Statement that states:
The use of terms such as mid-level provider and physician extender in reference to nurse practitioners (NPs) individually, or to an aggregate inclusive of NPs, is inaccurate and misleading. The American Association of Nurse Practitioners® (AANP) calls for the retirement of these inaccurate terms and endorses referring to NPs by their title.
Click link below to read the full statement by the AANP.
storage.aanp.org/www/documents/advocacy/position-papers/Useofterms.pdf?_gl=1*1g57s6w*_gcl_au*MTExMTA0MjYzLjE2ODkzNTgxMDc.
Enormous difference between mid levels and physicians…