New Mexico’s Healthcare Crisis: Why Doctors Are Leaving

In this episode of The Chile Wire, host Abenicio Baldonado sits down with Dr. Nathaniel Roybal, a native New Mexican and specialist in treating complex retinal disease, for an important conversation on the state of healthcare in New Mexico. Dr. Roybal shares his mission to see New Mexico be a state that provides timely, high quality care to patients across the state—and why that goal has become increasingly difficult to achieve.Together, they examine New Mexico’s growing healthcare crisis, unpacking how we got here and why being a small state should never mean settling for subpar care. The discussion breaks down the real-world impact of policies like HB27, passed in 2021, and how changes to punitive damages have altered the landscape for physicians, contributing to a worsening doctor shortage and longer wait times for patients.Dr. Roybal also offers insight into why doctors are leaving New Mexico, the challenges providers face on the front lines, and what must change if we want to restore access to quality healthcare for families and communities across the state.Tune in for a candid, informative discussion that highlights what’s at stake—and why New Mexico deserves a healthcare system that works for both patients and providers.