Today we’re talking about the state budget, and you know, there’s been a lot of people in this Roundhouse taking credit for—quote—“balancing the state budget during the recession and fixing the worst budget deficit in our history.” And while everybody argues over who balanced the budget, they all missed the more important point about how they balanced the budget. So I’m going to tell you.
Bloggers and politicos are trading barbs over the truthfulness of the Governor’s repeated claim that she closed the largest budget deficit in the history of the state. (Of course, by constitutional mandate the state cannot run a deficit, so there never was a deficit to close.) We can spend the summer debating the definition of a deficit or we can (and I believe we should) have the more important debate about how we want that budget to look in the future.
Since New Mexico dropped to 50th in the nation in child well-being almost a year ago, little if anything has been done to turn things around for our kids. Now comes news of yet another lost opportunity for improving outcomes for our young people. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has just released a new report on state ObamaCare enrollment through the health insurance exchanges or marketplaces. The report shows a dramatic failure on the part of New Mexico to sign up young people.
Beginning in 2014, it will no longer be a question of IF you have health care coverage, but HOW you get your coverage. In spite of all the foot dragging, complaining, talk of repealing, and website glitches, health care will soon be available to all citizens of the United States.
Even though New Mexico’s economic recovery lags far behind the rest of the nation, fewer and fewer of our low-income children are enrolled in the state-federal health care program New MexiKids (Medicaid and CHIP). In the last month alone, more than 1,200 children lost their health care coverage, according to the state’s monthly enrollment report. Worse, the number of children with coverage has dropped in more months than it has increased under Governor Martinez, and there are fewer children enrolled now than in January 2011 when she took office.
I reminded the Committee that, for uninsured New Mexicans, this is literally a matter of life and death. It is estimated that more than 300 New Mexicans die every year because they don’t get the kind of medical treatment they need due to not having health insurance. Having health insurance means people can get the kind of preventive and follow-up care that saves lives (and saves money).
We don’t know why Governor Martinez is still pondering the Medicaid expansion and we honestly can’t think of a good reason for her to deny health care to 150,000 of our friends, family, and neighbors. To those New Mexicans who don’t have health insurance because their employers don’t provide it and they can’t afford it on their own, this decision is literally a matter of life and death. But all of us will anxiously await—with hope—our Governor’s Judgment Day.
After much anticipation, the Supreme Court ruled to uphold the Affordable Care Act (ACA)—otherwise known as ObamaCare—by a 5-4 decision. While there is great confusion among the public about what the ACA will do to our nation’s health care delivery system, one easy way to understand the law is this: The ACA makes health insurance companies play fair. No more denying you coverage because of pre-existing conditions; no more dropping your coverage when you get sick; no more billing you into bankruptcy; and no more annual or lifetime limits—just to mention a few of the many benefits.
No state has more at stake than New Mexico. New Mexico has the third highest rate of uninsured in the nation and that not only gives us poor health outcomes, but it also serves as a major drag on our economy. Our small businesses cannot compete when their health insurance rates are higher than those in other states because of our high rate of uninsured. If the law is upheld, we have more to gain than any other state because most everyone will become insured. If the law is struck down, we have the most to lose. Either way, the decision will require action and the big question will be, “What will our leaders do?”
Imagine New Mexico as a community with 33 different neighborhoods. Then imagine yourself as a business leader looking to locate your company in one of those neighborhoods. As you consider what qualities each locality offers your firm—and your employees, many of whom have families and children—you may be surprised to discover that in 16 of these neighborhoods as many as half of the children live in poverty, roughly half of the families are headed by single parents, and half of the residents have limited access to healthy foods.