SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 23

47th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2006

INTRODUCED BY

Sue Wilson Beffort

A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THAT THE NEW MEXICO HEALTH POLICY COMMISSION APPOINT A TASK FORCE TO CONTINUE TO STUDY POSSIBLE LEGISLATIVE SOLUTIONS TO THE MALPRACTICE INSURANCE CRISIS FACING HEALTH CARE PRACTITIONERS AND PROVIDERS.

     WHEREAS, there is an escalating crisis in health care access due to skyrocketing malpractice insurance premiums for all types of health care practitioners and providers; and

     WHEREAS, declining medicare and medicaid reimbursement rates affect every type of practitioner and provider, including physicians, advance practice nurses, hospitals, nursing homes and health care clinics; and

     WHEREAS, practitioners and providers, including certified nurse-midwives, certified nurse practitioners, dentists, hospitals and others, must carry malpractice insurance coverage; and

     WHEREAS, malpractice insurance coverage for certain categories of practitioners and certain types of services is not available; and

     WHEREAS, many options and remedies have been identified that might address this escalating crisis, including adding all practitioners and providers to the Medical Malpractice Act, creating a joint underwriting association, stratifying malpractice insurance coverages, allowing practitioners and providers to purchase insurance through the risk management division of the general services department, creating additional patient compensation funds or self-insuring; and

     WHEREAS, a task force, in response to Senate Memorial 7 of the forty-seventh legislature, first session, identified several promising approaches to address these problems and decided that additional information and data were necessary before specific recommendations could be made;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the New Mexico health policy commission be requested to appoint a task force to continue to address the malpractice insurance crisis; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force be composed of representatives of the insurance industry; the insurance division of the public regulation commission; the governor's office; statewide associations that have members affected by this crisis and that represent obstetricians, family practice physicians, licensed midwives and nurse-midwives; dentists, hospitals, nursing homes and trial attorneys; academic professional leadership in the field of obstetrics and gynecology; and any other affected parties; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force make recommendations on possible legislative solutions to the malpractice insurance crisis for all health care practitioners and providers to the interim legislative health and human services committee by November 2006; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this memorial be transmitted to the director of the New Mexico health policy commission.

- 3 -