Ahead of New Mexico’s legislative session, a medical malpractice reform law is high on the docket as it centers on healthcare reforms. Searchlight New Mexico published a piece highlighting the argument on the new proposed legislation, and how it could be a major win for healthcare professionals, patients, and New Mexico consumers as a whole:

“Overhauling medical malpractice policies in New Mexico was among the health care reforms proposed during the 2025 legislative session. Senate Bill 176 — a bill that proposed limits on attorneys’ fees, a new reimbursement system for patients’ medical expenses and changes to punitive damages — was backed by nonpartisan think tank Think New Mexico and co-sponsored by a bipartisan group of 24 lawmakers.”

Medical malpractice lawsuits serve an important purpose: they give injured patients a civil remedy for harm caused by negligent care. Lawmakers, health providers, and business leaders have warned that New Mexico’s existing legal system has shifted towards an overabundance of lawsuits, rather than care. They claim that this system favors trial attorneys over patients, providers, and the general public, which is ultimately pushing physicians to leave the state.

Higher malpractice risk drives up health care costs for everyone by pushing insurance premiums higher, increasing defensive medicine practices, and diverting resources from patient care into legal defense. 

The evidence suggests that excessive litigation risk limits access to care. Many New Mexicans already face longer wait times and shrinking provider networks because of the overabundance of legal claimants inundating doctors offices,  the practice of medicine more uncertain and expensive,forcing healthcare providers out.

This is what lawsuit abuse looks like: a system that exists to compensate harmed patients but, in practice, drives up costs, reduces access to care, and pushes providers out of the market. Meaningful reform, which includes enhanced transparency for litigation incentives and processes that deter opportunistic claims, is not about denying justice. Instead, it aims to strike a balance between patients’ rights and a sustainable healthcare system: one that safeguards access, manages costs, shortens wait times, and fortifies a just and equitable legal framework for New Mexicans.