45th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2002

RELATING TO MEDICAL MALPRACTICE; AMENDING THE MEDICAL MALPRACTICE ACT TO INCLUDE CERTIFIED NURSE PRACTITIONER WITHIN THE DEFINITION OF "HEALTH CARE PROVIDER".

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

Section 1. Section 41-5-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1976, Chapter 2, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:

"41-5-3. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Medical Malpractice Act:

A. "health care provider" means a person, corporation, organization, facility or institution licensed or certified by this state to provide health care or professional services as a doctor of medicine, certified nurse practitioner, hospital, outpatient health care facility, doctor of osteopathy, chiropractor, podiatrist, nurse anesthetist or physician's assistant;

B. "insurer" means an insurance company engaged in writing health care provider malpractice liability insurance in this state;

C. "malpractice claim" includes any cause of action arising in this state against a health care provider for medical treatment, lack of medical treatment or other claimed departure from accepted standards of health care which proximately results in injury to the patient, whether the patient's claim or cause of action sounds in tort or contract, and includes but is not limited to actions based on battery or wrongful death; "malpractice claim" does not include a cause of action arising out of the driving, flying or nonmedical acts involved in the operation, use or maintenance of a vehicular or aircraft ambulance;

D. "medical care and related benefits" means all reasonable medical, surgical, physical rehabilitation and custodial services and includes drugs, prosthetic devices and other similar materials reasonably necessary in the provision of such services;

E. "patient" means a natural person who received or should have received health care from a licensed health care provider, under a contract, express or implied; and

F. "superintendent" means the superintendent of insurance of this state."