Legislative Status: Health Security Plan Design Funding
We're now midway through the legislative session, and we've been working hard to ensure continued funding for the Health Security Plan design process.
As soon as we found out that "junior" money (discretionary funding for each legislator) would be available, board members, staff, and close allies immediately contacted supportive legislators to ask them to allocate some of their "junior" funding to the Health Security Plan design process. While we don't have totals yet, we were very encouraged by the number of legislators who expressed interest in contributing "junior" funding!
It was exciting to see Senate Bill 80, the $1.5 million appropriation bill to continue the Health Security Plan design process, pass the Senate Health & Public Affairs Committee last week. Next stop is Senate Finance—the Senate committee in charge of the state's budget.
The state budget bill, House Bill 2, is scheduled to be voted on by the full House today and then will head over to Senate Finance for amendments and approval. (The funding requested in SB 80 would have to be approved by Senate Finance as a supplement to the agency budget for the Office of Superintendent of Insurance.)
Initial Research Reports Posted
Some initial research in the Health Security Plan design process is now available on the Office of Superintendent of Insurance website.
After the legislative session ends, we will be delving into all of the preliminary reports and sharing with you the key findings—as well as what additional research is needed.
Posted so far are two reports on global budgets for hospitals and how this approach might work in New Mexico, along with an overview of current federal health care laws and how the Health Security Act might navigate this legal landscape. These are just the first reports, and important research on provider payment systems is not yet available. Additional materials will be posted when they are ready.
Weekly Legislative Update: Tomorrow @ 6:30 PM!
We'll be holding our second weekly 2022 legislative update on February 3, at 6:30 PM. It's an online event, via Zoom. Register now!
Executive director Mary Feldblum will be discussing our progress at the legislature and will answer your questions about the legislative process and continued funding for Health Security.