OPINION: Health care crisis isn't 'political theater'

As New Mexico faces a growing health care access crisis, one of the most dangerous things we can do is pretend the root causes aren’t real. Yet that’s exactly what happened when the chair of the Legislative Health and Human Services Committee recently called the medical malpractice crisis a “phantom problem” and dismissed years of serious concerns as mere “political theater.”

This rhetoric is not only dismissive of New Mexico’s doctors, nurses and rural hospitals — it’s factually wrong. And the data proves it.

Let’s start with the facts. According to a June 2025 Legislative Finance Committee report, New Mexico needs at least 200 more primary care physicians to meet basic federal coverage standards. Thirty-two of our 33 counties are still designated Health Professional Shortage Areas. That’s not a phantom problem. That’s a real crisis.

Yet despite billions in Medicaid rate increases and aggressive recruitment programs, providers continue to flee the state. Why? Because of our out-of-control medical liability climate. In 2021, the Legislature raised the cap on noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases to $750,000 for outpatient facilities, climbing to $1 million by 2027. Since then, insurers like The Doctors Company have withdrawn from New Mexico. Premiums have skyrocketed. Independent physicians and rural clinics are either closing or going bare — risking total financial ruin if sued.

In fact, the same June 2025 LFC data shows that even as the state increased Medicaid reimbursements to 150% of Medicare in some areas, New Mexico still lost over 1,500 providers last year alone. This cannot be explained away by student loan debt or credentialing delays. These doctors are leaving because they can’t afford the risk of practicing here anymore.

And this trend isn’t unique to New Mexico. National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) studies have found that doctors are willing to accept significantly lower salaries — up to 13% less — just to work in states with caps on malpractice damages. Another NBER study found that states with aggressive malpractice laws tend to have the worst physician shortages, especially in rural areas. That’s the reality our policymakers should be focused on.

Meanwhile, rural hospitals are buckling under the financial weight. For example, Union County General Hospital saw its annual malpractice premiums balloon from $142,000 to $850,000. Searchlight New Mexico reports that we were the only state in the U.S. to suffer a net physician loss between 2019 and 2024. These aren’t theoretical problems. They’re boots-on-the-ground consequences of legislative decisions.

Trial attorneys, of course, are doing just fine. Contingency fees of up to 40% are common. Litigation-related costs routinely consume a third or more of each malpractice payout. Meanwhile, patients and rural communities are left to suffer the fallout.

So let’s be clear: This is not about avoiding accountability for bad actors. It’s about protecting access to care for everyone else. The idea that tort reform and patient rights are mutually exclusive is a false choice — and one that’s costing New Mexico lives.

Leadership requires facing hard truths. Denying that medical malpractice reform is urgently needed isn’t just out of touch — it’s reckless. Our state can’t afford to lose more providers. And we certainly can’t afford to keep dismissing real problems as “political theater.”