(The Center Square) – New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced a list of 11 rural healthcare providers that will receive funding from the state’s Rural Health Care Delivery Fund this week.
The governor and Legislature set aside $80 million for the initiative in the last legislative session.
“Living in a rural area shouldn’t be a deciding factor for the level of health care New Mexicans receive,” Governor Lujan Grisham said in a press release. “It is a number one priority of this administration to take whatever actions are necessary to build up and support health care providers. Taking a significant portion of the financial burden off of rural providers to expand access will have a real impact on the lives and health of New Mexicans.”
The governor will announce the other recipients in November.
“This initiative, championed by Gov. Lujan Grisham, will provide crucial funding to rural health care providers, enabling them to offer new and expanded services in their communities,” the release explained. “The awardees include services for maternal health care, including OB/GYNs, behavioral health, and primary care.”
Here is a list of the initial recipients:
Covenant Health Hobbs: Expanding labor and delivery, pre-and post-natal care, and maternal health in Lea and Eddy Counties.El Centro Family Health: Start-up of dental health services in Taos County.Gallup Community Health: Increase primary care and behavioral health services in McKinley County.Gerald Champion Regional Medical Center: Restart in-person outpatient psychiatric services that ceased during the COVID-19 pandemic and expand inpatient behavioral health in Otero County.Laguna Healthcare Corp: Expand primary care services, pharmacy, laboratory, and radiology in Cibola County.Mimbres Memorial Hospital: Expand pediatric outpatient, inpatient, emergency, and labor and delivery services in Luna County.Nurstead Consulting Services, LLC: Create a 24-hour, 7-day-a-week drop-in facility to provide mental health support services in Curry County.South Central Colfax County Special Hospital District: Increase primary care services, particularly for older adults, and expand substance use services in Colfax County.Sunrise Clinics: Expand and increase primary care and behavioral health services for youth in Colfax, Guadalupe, Harding, Mora, Quay, Taos, and Torrance Counties.The Learning Path, LLC: Expand in-person behavioral health services in Socorro County.The Psychiatric Care Center LLC: Expand behavioral health services in Curry, De Baca, Lea, Quay, and Roosevelt Counties.
The initial recipients must implement these new services by the end of this year.
“We’re excited to hear the announcement of the initial awardees from the fund, and applaud the efforts of the governor and our legislature to continue to address the needs of improving access to healthcare through measures like the Rural Health Care Delivery Fund,” Troy Clark, President & CEO of the New Mexico Hospital Association, said.
Qualified Medicaid providers offering primary care, behavioral health, maternal child health services and specialty care were among those eligible for funding.
More information on the New Mexico Rural Health Care Delivery Fund is available here.
