The New Mexico Senate passed the Medical Malpractice Changes bill Tuesday night with only two votes against. It first passed in the house on February 14. Wednesday the senate argued for nearly three hours about amendments that were then added to the bill in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
New Mexico has some of the highest malpractice payouts in the country, and House Bill 99 limits the damages awarded to about $900,000 for an independent provider and up to $6 million for a hospital.
Republican Senator Crystal Brantley led the charge against the amendments calling the committee’s additions a “hijacking” of a carefully crafted bill with agreements struck between different groups of stakeholders.
“The concern is that once it came out of Senate Judiciary with so many changes that maybe perhaps the trial attorneys or the influence they had there reneged on some of the agreements,” she said. “So we’re back to what may be arguably a soiled bill.”
The vote to remove the amendments passed 25-17, which Brantey said may have saved the bill from being vetoed. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said in her State of the State address malpractice was one of her top priorities. She had threatened a special session if something was not passed.
The bill was one of the most closely watched of the 30-day session. Supporters say reforming medical malpractice will help bring more doctors to the state, and opponents say it will leave victims without a path to justice.
The bill now heads to the Governor for her signature or veto.
Support for this coverage comes from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation
