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Medicaid and Federal Legislative Affairs
Child Advocacy Resources
2007 Legislative Session Update  (Contact your legislators http://legis.state.nm.us)
BECOME PART OF THE OUR
LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY
NETWORK
You can sign on by emailing
chairperson, Larry Shandler,
shandlerlaurence (at) qwest (dot) net.
The 2007 New Mexico Legislative session lasted from mid-January until almost April. In addition to the
regular sixty day session, Governor Richardson called a special session ending on March 30, 2007. In
the regular sixty day session almost 3000 bills, memorials, resolutions were introduced. The New Mexico
Pediatric Society, along with its allies, particularity the New Mexico Medical Society and New Mexico
Voices for Children tracked about 60-75 bills of importance to children and those who provide health
care to them.  The children of New Mexico and members of the New Mexico Pediatric Society had a
successful session.
Medicaid was funded at a level to continue present programs and provide coverage to adults at 100% or
less of the Federal Poverty Level. There will be a provider fee/payment increase.

Bills passed by the Legislative and signed by the Governor:
(1)        Increasing the state minimum wage
(2)        Child Helmet Safety Act
(3)        A statewide clean indoor air act
(4)        Use of breast pumps in the workplace
(5)        Individual investment accounts for children
(6)        Liability coverage for retired physicians who volunteer their service
(7)        Mandatory insurance coverage for HPV vaccine
(8)        Rural practitioner state income tax credit
(9)        Removal of gross receipts tax (GRT) penalty provision
(10)      On call services GRT tax deduction

Memorial (These are requests to study an issue):
(1)        Study to be conducted by the NM Medical Society, NM Trial Lawyers Association, Department on
the effects/results of raising the medical liability
(2)        Develop a Young Children and Family Continuum Group to advise the legislature on issues
effecting young children and their families
(3)        Availability of emergency contraception
(4)        Auto-closure of Medicaid

Many bills which required funding were folded into the two main appropriation bills; House Bill 2 and
House Bill 2 Jr.:
(1)        Pre-K expansion
(2)        Early intervention service for children birth to three
(3)        Teen pregnancy prevention
(4)        Infant mental health
(5)        Increase eligibility and payments for child care assistance
(6)        Pediatric telehealth
(7)        RIOS outpatient research network
(8)        Autism evaluation and treatment
(9)        Programs for children of incarcerated parents
(10)      Home Visiting

Most of the bills that we opposed didn’t make it to a legislative vote:
(1)        Parental notification of abortion
(2)        Tax breaks for the Desert Rock power plant
(3)        Banning aspartame and its derivatives
(4)        Nutritional councils
(5)        Open the malpractice act to double the limits of liability
(6)        Various acts to criminalize the parents of children born with drug addiction or fetal alcohol system

The Governor supported our request to veto the bill to put into law a mandate to vaccinate 12 year old
girls against HPV.

Issues that did not succeed as we had desired this session:
(1)        Health care reform
(2)        Medicaid payment for medical interpreters

I would like to thank all the NMPS members who are part of the Legislative Action Network. Thanks too to
all NMPS members who championed specific bills and/or memorials. A special thanks to our Executive
Director, Erin Damour, who kept, , the emails and link so that we could be active participants in the
legislative process, especially in the closing days of the session and the weeks after when the governor
was considering legislatio

Actually, the end of the legislative session doesn’t mean that your involvement with your state legislators
should end. The legislative session is a very hectic time. Our New Mexico legislators serve without pay
and without a full time staff. When the legislature is not in session, your legislator has more time to meet
with you.  They welcome your input and your thanks for their efforts and their votes.
RESOURCES
1.        Governor’s Office is 505-476-2200
8080/billwatcher/bill appropriate bill number.
appropriate bill number.

. After you register, click on the link to the
click on the link to the bill watcher main . After you register, click on the link to the page, select "add items to your
personal bill watcher list" and enter the appropriate bill number.
appropriate bill number.

here: http://legis.state.nm.us/lcs/legislatorsearch.asp
us/lcs/legislatorsearch.asp

4.        To write to a representative:
    Rep. __________
    New Mexico House of Representatives
    State Capitol Building
    Santa Fe, NM  87501
5.        To write to a senator:
    Sen. _____________
    New Mexico Senate
    State Capitol Building
    Santa Fe, NM  87501

6.        Data for Your District: If you'd like to know more about your legislative districts you can take a look at some of the
data compiled by NM Voices for Children. It's all posted on their website http://www.nmvoices.
org/legis_briefing_book_07.htm. Also, the Annie E. Casey Foundation has data relating to child poverty and well being
at http://www.aecf.org/kidscount/census/

7. Congressional Delegation
Other Resources for Legislative Information:
  • Early Childhood Action Network (ECAN) / Early Childhood Policy Group http://www.earlychildhoodnm.com/.  
  • Human Needs Coordinating Council http://www.hncc.org
  • Luthern Office of Governmental Ministries: http://www.logmnm.org
  • NM Public Health Association: http://www.nmpha.org
  • New Mexico Voices for Children: http://www.nmvoices.org
  • New Mexico Association for the Education of Young Children (Baji Rankin, Executive Director) -- 2201 Buena
    Vista Ave.  SE   Suite 424, Albuquerque, NM  87106 -- 505-243-kids [5437] (phone), 505-242-7310 (fax)