Features

New Mexico Environment Department Secures Funding For Mobile Air Monitoring Lab From Legal Settlement

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NMED News:

SANTA FE — The New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) is enhancing its ability to monitor air quality with a new mobile air monitoring lab, funded by a $500,000 legal settlement between conservation group WildEarth Guardians and OXY USA Inc., one of the largest oil and gas producers in the country.

The funding will allow NMED to purchase the lab, equip it with supplies, and cover start-up costs, including personnel and operational needs.

The mobile lab will be able to test air quality and weather conditions in real time in the Permian Basin, a region that produces nearly 40% of the Read More

State Treasurer: Let’s Put Our Money Where Our Mouth Is!

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By LAURA M. MONTOYA
New Mexico State Treasurer

My journey is similar to many other New Mexicans’ in that it took a lot of hard work, hope, resilience, community, and prayer to keep pushing forward to work towards something better for me and my family.

Dreams were the hope that helped drive the determination to keep pushing forward, but survival was always at the forefront of every decision and job I undertook. Financial struggle, living paycheck to paycheck to make ends meet — a typical New Mexico story. Add limited resources, knowledge and opportunity, and you have an equation for failure or extreme Read More

Medicaid Provider Rates Increase In 2025 

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Health Care Authority News:

          • Some services raised to 150% of Medicare rates

SANTA FE – The Health Care Authority (HCA) announced today that some Medicaid provider rates increased effective Jan. 1, as part of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s ongoing efforts to strengthen health care access across the state.

The adjustments aim to support providers delivering services to Medicaid patients.

“This increase is an important step in building a stronger partnership with health care providers who serve Medicaid members,” Medicaid Director Dana Flannery said. “By investing in our providers, we are Read More

NMSP: Man Shot After Argument At Family Health Center

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NMSP News:

New Mexico State Police (NMSP) Investigations Bureau agents were called Dec. 30, 2024, to 1302 East Main Street, Quay County Family Health Center in Tucumcari, to investigate a shooting.

Agents learned that around 4:10 p.m., a call came into 911 where a female stated her husband was shot. Investigators learned that Anthony Kent, 56, was arguing with another male in the parking lot of the health center when the argument escalated.

At some point during the argument, Kent brandished a firearm and discharged multiple rounds. The male’s wife exited the health center after hearing the Read More

New Year’s Resolution: Help Others Thrive In 2025 … Give Blood!

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By BERNADETTE LAURITZEN
Los Alamos

How would you like to have a New Year’s Resolution that could be accomplished in a brief period, just once or even a few times a year? If the idea is new to you, try it just once and if you like it, feel free to set your own goal. Oh, and did I mention it just might save a life?

You can help someone thrive in 2025 and help a non-profit organization save lives for people in the process. The nonprofit is Vitalant, and the goal is donating blood. Did you know in January of 2024 there was a total of 180 donations in our community? They hope to beat that goal in the new year, even by one Read More

New Documents On Review Of Chromium Interim Measures Remediation System In Mortandad Canyon Added To LANL Electronic Public Reading Room

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LANL News:

Per regulatory requirements, new documents have been added to the Los Alamos Legacy Cleanup Contract Electronic Public Reading Room.

All legacy cleanup documents required to be posted after April 30, 2018, are available on the site linked above.

For legacy cleanup documents that were posted prior to April 30, 2018, visit the LANL electronic public reading room.

In March 2024, EM-LA and NMED convened a team of experts from the Network of National Laboratories for Environmental Management and Stewardship, industry, academia, and EPA Region 6 to perform a technical review of actions Read More

Dannemann: Consumer Protection On The Line

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By MERILEE DANNEMANN
Triple Spaced Again
© 2024 New Mexico News Services

The patient was all set for surgery. The insurance company had approved the surgery and the patient was in the hospital’s administrative office to settle last-minute details. Two days before the surgery was scheduled, the hospital received a notice from the insurance company that the claim was denied. The patient, panicked, contacted the insurance company and was told, “Well, you can always pay cash.”

This story was told in several reports I heard on NPR. At least one version was recounted by the patient herself, which Read More

Supreme Court Justice And District Judge: Healthy Communities Are Rooted In Meaningful Access To Affordable Civil Legal Services

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Supreme Court Justice C. Shannon Bacon

By New Mexico Supreme Court Justice C. Shannon Bacon
and District Judge Erin B. O’Connell, chair of the New Mexico Commission on Access to Justice

Three out of four low-income households in New Mexico struggle with legal issues impacting basic needs like housing, financial stability, access to social and medical benefits.

New Mexico’s civil legal service providers handle thousands of cases every year, but a lack of capacity caused them to turn away more than half of the people seeking help last year.

The New Mexico Commission on Access to Justice works Read More