Every fall, New Mexicans roast their chile, watch balloons rise and breathe the piñon-scented air. Yet even as we celebrate tradition, too many families wait months for medical appointments, drive hours for care, or face the heartbreak of losing their doctors. Behind...
Patients in Peril
New Mexico’s health care crisis is forcing military personnel to decline assignments
About a year after Christine Calhoun and her family moved to Cannon Air Force Base, her 5-year-old son woke up from a nap and didn’t remember her. “It was horrifying,” Calhoun said. In Clovis, the closest city to Cannon, there are no pediatric neurologists. That...
The Price of Delay: A Doctor’s Battle to Save a Patient’s Foot
A New Mexico doctor fought for his patient through months of system delays—only to see a treatable condition become a lifelong disability.
Preventable Amputation: A Nurse Practitioner’s Story of Loss
In rural New Mexico, a hardworking rancher lived with undiagnosed hypertension and diabetes. Like so many others, he couldn’t find a primary care provider. Long waits and limited access led him to delay care—until a foot injury sent him to the ER.
By then, it was too late.
Forced to Flee: A 10-Year-Old’s Journey for Care Out of State
When no pediatric rheumatologists were available in New Mexico, one family drove 900 miles so their child wouldn’t suffer permanent damage.




