As used in the Indigent Hospital and County Health Care Act:

Ask a legal question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

A. “ambulance provider” or “ambulance service” means a specialized carrier based within the state authorized under provisions and subject to limitations as provided in individual carrier certificates issued by the public regulation commission to transport persons alive, dead or dying en route by means of ambulance service. The rates and charges established by public regulation commission tariff shall govern as to allowable cost. Also included are air ambulance services approved by the county. The air ambulance service charges shall be filed and approved pursuant to Subsection D of Section 27-5-6 N.M. Stat. Ann. and Section 27-5-11 N.M. Stat. Ann.;

B. “cost” means all allowable costs of providing health care services, to the extent determined by resolution of a county, for an indigent patient. Allowable costs shall be based on medicaid fee-for-service reimbursement rates for hospitals, licensed medical doctors and osteopathic physicians;

C. “county” means a county except a class A county with a county hospital operated and maintained pursuant to a lease or operating agreement with a state educational institution named in Article 12, Section 11 of the constitution of New Mexico;

D. “department” means the human services department [health care authority department];

E. “fund” means a county health care assistance fund;

F. “health care services” means treatment and services designed to promote improved health in the county indigent population, including primary care, prenatal care, dental care, behavioral health care, alcohol or drug detoxification and rehabilitation, hospital care, provision of prescription drugs, preventive care or health outreach services, to the extent determined by resolution of the county;

G. “indigent patient” means a person to whom an ambulance service, a hospital or a health care provider has provided medical care, ambulance transportation or health care services and who can normally support the person’s self and the person’s dependents on present income and liquid assets available to the person but, taking into consideration the person’s income, assets and requirements for other necessities of life for the person and the person’s dependents, is unable to pay the cost of the ambulance transportation or medical care administered or both; provided that if a definition of “indigent patient” is adopted by a county in a resolution, the definition shall not include any person whose annual income together with that person’s spouse’s annual income totals an amount that is fifty percent greater than the per capita personal income for New Mexico as shown for the most recent year available in the survey of current business published by the United States department of commerce. “Indigent patient” includes a minor who has received ambulance transportation or medical care or both and whose parent or the person having custody of that minor would qualify as an indigent patient if transported by ambulance, admitted to a hospital for care or treated by a health care provider;

H. “medicaid eligible” means a person who is eligible for medical assistance from the department;

I. “planning” means the development of a countywide or multicounty health plan to improve and fund health services in the county based on the county’s needs assessment and inventory of existing services and resources and that demonstrates coordination between the county and state and local health planning efforts;

J. “public entity” means a state, local or tribal government or other political subdivision or agency of that government; and

K. “qualifying hospital” means an acute care general hospital licensed by the department of health that is qualified to receive payments from the safety net care pool pursuant to an agreement with the federal centers for medicare and medicaid services.