The Health Security for New Mexicans Campaign’s Executive Committee and staff want to express our concern for the health and safety of all our state’s residents. We hope you are staying home, washing your hands(!), following the directives of our governor, and doing all that's necessary to help blunt the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although we are at home, we are still working—and are busy figuring out what changes we need to make as we navigate this rapidly evolving situation. Virtual meeting platforms like Zoom will allow us to continue to present to local organizations and to hold trainings and information sessions for those interested in learning more about Health Security.
And while the COVID-19 outbreak has prompted this shift toward online outreach, we can't help but notice that virtual options will make it possible for us to engage with people around the state in new ways. (Let us know if you're interested in a virtual workshop on Health Security or one that addresses what a fiscal analysis is all about.)
This crisis has only begun to expose the serious weaknesses in our health care system (and in our socioeconomic and political systems), and we expect that this situation will unfortunately get worse before it gets better. The number of COVID-19 cases in the state continues to rise, and last week alone close to 11,000 New Mexicans applied for unemployment benefits. The number of uninsured is likely rising in tandem. While we continue to work on long-term systemic health care reform, stopgap solutions on many fronts are needed right now.
The Superintendent of Insurance recently announced an emergency rule that waives all cost sharing (deductibles, copays, and coinsurance) for insured patients when services are needed to treat COVID-19, flu, or pneumonia. This is a positive step, but clearly much more is required—at both the federal and state levels—to ensure that all who need treatment will be able to receive it.
To our health care providers, thank you. To everyone else, please stay home, and stay healthy!
For the latest updates on the situation in New Mexico, go to the NM Department of Health's COVID-19 website at https://cv.nmhealth.org/, or click on the image below.
