A. The fund may be used to pay for:

(1) expenses of burial or cremation of an indigent person;

(2) ambulance transportation, hospital care and health care services for indigent patients; or

(5) [(3)] county administrative expenses associated with fund expenditures authorized in Paragraphs of this subsection.

B. The fund may be used to meet a county's obligation under Section 27-10-4 NMSA 1978.

History: Laws 1993, ch. 321, § 16; 2001, ch. 307, § 2; 2014, ch. 79, § 10.

The 2014 amendment, effective March 12, 2014, specified the health care costs that may be paid from the health care assistance fund; in the catchline, after "County", deleted "indigent hospital claims" and added "health care assistance"; in Subsection A, after "The fund", deleted "shall" and added "may"; in Subsection A, deleted former Paragraph (1), which required money in the fund to be used to meet the county's contribution for support of sole community provider payments; in Subsection A, deleted former Paragraph (3), which required money in the fund be used to pay approved claims that are not matched with federal funds under the state medicaid program; and in Subsection A, added new Paragraphs (2) and (5)[(3)].

Compiler's notes. — The bracketed material was inserted by the compiler and is not part of the law.

The governor partially vetoed Laws 2014, ch. 79, § 10. In Subsection A, the governor vetoed Paragraphs (3) and (4) which provided:

"(3) all or a portion of the monthly premiums of health insurance policies for indigent patients;

(4) all or a portion of the out-of-pocket costs, including copayments and deductibles, incurred by indigent patient insureds pursuant to the terms of a health insurance policy;"

In Subsection A, Paragraph (5), after "Paragraphs", the governor vetoed "(1) through (4)".

To view the chaptered bill in its entirety, see the 2014 session laws on NMOneSource.com.

The 2001 amendment, effective June 15, 2001, inserted the current Paragraph A(2), redesignated the subsequent paragraph; and deleted Subsection C.

Compiler's notes. — Subsection A of § 22, Laws 1993, ch. 321, provides that §§ 3, 6, 10, 15, 16 and 18 (27-5-3, 27-5-6, 27-5-6.1, 27-5-7.1, 27-5-11 and 27-5-12.2 NMSA 1978) are effective the date that the human services department is notified in writing that the amendment to the state medicaid plan has been approved by the federal health care financing administration. The human services department was advised by letter dated May 20, 1993, that the United States Department of Health and Human Services had approved the amendment of New Mexico's medicaid plan "to add a payment provision for sole community hospitals (SCH), effective July 1, 1993, and a payment provision for indirect medical education (IME) costs incurred by teaching hospitals, effective August 1, 1992". Chapter 321, Laws 1993, contained an emergency clause. The human services department published notice of the approval in the New Mexican on June 21, 1993.