Human Services Department

New Mexico’s state government is taking part in a program for the next two years to improve housing and health policy, and a wide range of state agencies will participate.

The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, known as LIHEAP, is available to people whose income is at or below 150% of the federal poverty level.

During the COVID pandemic, Congress required that Medicaid keep people continuously enrolled throughout the public health emergency order. But that order has ended and now nearly 60,000 New Mexicans have lost their health insurance. On the next Let’s Talk New Mexico, we’ll discuss how this unwinding process will impact health outcomes.

New Mexico gave adults over 60 years old and adults with disabilities extra Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits in June. That comes a few months after the federal government ended its pandemic expansion of the program.

New Mexico residents with low incomes can apply for state economic relief beginning Monday, June 12. The payments are for those who don’t qualify for the tax rebates that start going out next week. Though officials recommend retroactively filing a tax return, and getting access to a rebate instead, if possible.

The state Human Services Department is urging New Mexicans who’ve gotten used to not having to renew their Medicaid coverage to not let it lapse. Since the renewal deadlines vary, the state has aligned them with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for those who receive both benefits.

As the federal public health emergency comes to end on May 11, so do expanded food and nutrition benefits. The New Mexico Human Services Department started issuing the last of the pandemic-era boost for children under 6 years old this week.

The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline was created last July for people who are experiencing a mental health crisis to be connected to a mental health provider. Now, the New Mexico Human Services Department has added an extension for LGBTQ people that will connect them with a specially trained mental health peer expert.

In episode 34, we discover how prepared hospitals and health care facilities in New Mexico really are. And we go all over the state for this one. We hear…

People who apply for food and medical assistance programs in New Mexico got used to long waits, mysterious denials, and catch-22s of bureaucracy. But…