New Mexico coming after neglectful caregivers

On Tuesday, March 21, 2023, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and the top health authorities in New Mexico warned that any caretakers who abuse or mistreat developmentally-impaired or other vulnerable people will face serious legal consequences. This comes after a case of abuse and neglect that was brought to the state’s attention resulted in the termination of four service providers in the Albuquerque region. Investigations of five additional incidents are ongoing, three of which involve deceased patients. State health officials visited over a thousand participants in the federally-sponsored waiver program and discovered eight possible instances that require further review.

“If you’re not providing the care that you were supposed to provide, we will find you, and you will be held accountable. That’s it — zero tolerance in the state of New Mexico. We are coming,” Governor Grisham said in a conference.

The governor’s sister has developmental disabilities, so the recent abuse and neglect instances are particularly alarming to her. The neglectful behaviors such as starvation were also involved in some of the other cases discovered recently. Cases of neglect and abuse have gone undetected in part due to the pandemic and the public health regulations that prevented family members or other support systems from visiting the patients.

Health Secretary Patrick Allen plans to visit the remaining 5,100 enrolled in the developmentally impaired waiver program over the twenty-day period. The state continues to investigate the allegations and plans to check all case files to prevent further unchecked, sinister activities from occurring.

Though no charges have been brought against the caregivers involved in the initial March 1 incident, which resulted in life-threatening injuries for the disabled victim, the state of New Mexico warned that any caretakers who neglect their duty will face severe consequences. Several of these ex-caregivers intend to dispute the state’s decision to terminate their contracts.

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