SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 55

49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2009

INTRODUCED BY

Gerald P. Ortiz y Pino

A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH TO CONDUCT A STUDY TO DETERMINE THE NEED FOR SOCIAL WORKERS, THE COST OF GRADUATE SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION AND THE NEED FOR STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR SOCIAL WORKERS.

     WHEREAS, loan forgiveness programs encourage future professionals to pursue certain fields of study by offsetting incurred loan debt with payments for certain work-related requirements that must be fulfilled by the student borrower; and

     WHEREAS, according to the board of social work examiners, New Mexico had only three thousand five hundred social workers licensed at the master's level in 2008; and

     WHEREAS, according to the workforce solutions department, a beginning master's level social worker earns an average of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) per year, but graduates with an average debt of twenty-six thousand seven hundred dollars ($26,700); and

     WHEREAS, in fiscal year 2008, an estimated eighty thousand two hundred fifty-four consumers were served with mental health services, according to the annual report of the interagency behavioral health purchasing collaborative; and

     WHEREAS, as a group, social workers are traditionally the largest provider of mental health services; and

     WHEREAS, the New Mexico health policy commission manages a geographic access data system that collects and reports information on the distribution of selected health professionals in rural and underserved areas to inform policy decisions regarding the need for health professionals in those areas; and

     WHEREAS, data regarding the availability or need for social workers is not included in that geographic access data system;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the department of health be requested to conduct a study to determine the need for social workers, the cost of graduate social work education and the need for student loan forgiveness for social workers; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study identify current shortages of social workers, particularly in rural areas; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the department of health collaborate with the New Mexico health policy commission to identify the steps necessary to include social workers in the geographic access data system; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study develop criteria for awarding student loan forgiveness to social work students; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the department of health consult with the New Mexico chapter of the national association of social workers and an association representing social work students in conducting the study; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the findings and recommendations of this study be presented to the interim legislative health and human services committee by October 1, 2009; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this memorial be transmitted to the secretary of health.

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