New Mexicans who are looking for health insurance through the state's exchange will have to enroll now if they want coverage by the first of the year. If they miss today's deadline, they'll still have a chance to enroll through the “BeWellN-M” exchange until February 15th. Exchange CEO Amy Dowd says she doesn't have any hard figures about the enrollment rate so far, but counselors, agents and brokers have fielded a steady stream of inquiries via the website, phone and in-person visits at the exchange's enrollment center in Albuquerque. Dowd says four insurers are part of the exchange this year and there are now more than 40 plans to choose from.During the last open enrollment period, about 32-thousand people in New Mexico bought insurance through the exchange.
An observance the Santa Fe Railyard Sunday commemorated the second anniversary of the Sandy Hook shootings, the deadliest mass shootings at a high school or grade school in U-S History and the second-deadliest mass shooing by a single person in U-S History.
Paul Schmidt is with the non-profit, New Mexicans for Gun Safety: *****121514-Schmidt-1 :22***** Schmidt describes the incidents that occurred on December 14th, 2012: *****121514-Schmidt-Feature-3:40***** Schmidt says the positive that came out of Sandy Hook locally was the formation of New Mexicans for Gun Safety. Sunday’s event brought peace activist Father John Dear to Santa Fe. Dear, who was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Bishop Desmond Tutu, told the crowd that non-violence requires three simultaneous attitudes: *****121514-Dear-1 :31*****
Governor Susana Martinez says the rate of deaths from drug overdoses in New Mexico has dropped significantly. Martinez said Friday that New Mexico did not rank first or second nationally for drug overdose fatality rates for the first time since 1992. Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate New Mexico's rate fell 16-percent between 2011 and 2013. New Mexico's rate is now behind West Virginia and Kentucky. Martinez says the reduction in deaths is in part due to state efforts to combat prescription drug abuse. Martinez's administration developed guidelines in 2012 for mandatory participation among health care providers in New Mexico's Prescription Monitoring Program.
New Mexico still needs the services of a firm hired to calculate how much back pay is owed to thousands of state workers. The Santa Fe New Mexican reported Friday that the Bethesda, Maryland-based B-D-O firm has already billed the state $1.6 million. The state Supreme Court ruled last year that 10,000 current or former employees were entitled to retroactive pay increases.
Organizers are planning an art exhibit featuring work by female inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center and girls from the Youth Services Center. Bernalillo County Cultural Services and the Southwest Women's Law Center announced last week that the "Unconfined: Empowering Women through the Arts" will aim to celebrate their stories through art.The exhibit will begin in March in celebration of National Women's History Month. Women artists residing in New Mexico also are invited to submit work. Organizers say the exhibit will be on display at the African American Performing Arts Center Gallery.
An underground missile silo is one of New Mexico's hottest real estate properties. Real estate agent Jim Moore says he has gotten more than 40 calls about the 10-story silo near Roswell. KOB-TV reports the silo is on the market for $295,000. The deal includes 25 acres of land and 280 acres of water rights.
Hundreds of New Mexico bird enthusiasts are expected to take part in the longest-running citizen science survey of birds. The National Audubon Society on Sunday launched the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count as species like the Black Rosy-Finch suffer under warming conditions in the state. The Black Rosy-Finch spends winters in the Sandia Crest area and they are regularly monitored during the annual count. Data compiled across New Mexico will record individual birds and bird species seen in specified areas. Last year's court in New Mexico tallied 224 species statewide, and a new all-time high of 525,000 individual birds. Albuquerque had the most species with 120. The biggest contributor to the individual bird totals was Bosque del Apache with 146,000.
Santa Fe Weather: Mostly sunny today with the high only 36. It’ll be mostly cloudy tonight with the overnight low down to 25. For tomorrow, expect partly sunny skies with the high near 44.