by Roz Brown for Public News Service
New Mexico's median household income is far below the national average, making federal cuts to Medicaid and skyrocketing insurance costs a double whammy.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed by congressional Republicans in 2025 will cut nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act over the next decade. New Mexico lawmakers acted quickly, becoming the only state to backfill expiring federal enhanced tax credits with $40 million in state funds.
Emily Wildau, senior research and policy analyst for the nonprofit New Mexico Voices for Children, said it drove a 15% increase in marketplace enrollment, while national numbers dropped.
"New Mexico's had a lot of practice in planning ahead. And the question now is just how do we keep figuring out what the trade-offs look like when some of these federal changes are really significant to our budget and the way the state pays for things our families and kids need," Wildau explained.
Wildau acknowledged the state's Health Care Affordability Fund filling the gaps could be depleted if more people seek lower insurance premiums through the state's marketplace exchange. Last week, legislative analysts warned the fund will soon run out of money.
At the same time, New Mexico has one advantage most states do not, as the second-largest crude oil-producing state in the U.S. behind Texas. Last week's report said the state could realize $924 million in "new money," largely due to the Iran war driving up oil prices.
According to research by the advocacy group Protect Our Care, 8 million Americans have lost their healthcare since the Republican spending bill was passed, including nearly 8,000 New Mexicans. Additionally, more than 1,000 U.S. healthcare providers are at risk, have announced cuts, are closing, or have closed.
Wildau noted it is hard to predict the effects of federal legislative updates down the road.
"There are these larger system changes coming starting in 2028 that will really impact if hospitals and clinics can stay open, which is especially troubling in our rural communities where there's already a lot of shortages of providers," Wildau stressed.
The updates will include new out-of-pocket costs for certain Medicaid enrollees and stricter preenrollment verification rules for Affordable Care Act marketplace subsidies.
Meanwhile, Protect Our Care said 19 hospitals, clinics and nursing homes in New Mexico have been forced to shut down, cut services or are at risk of doing so. The organization has launched a campaign called “Sick of It! Fix Health Care Now," with data for each state.