NM Stat § 24-7A-1 (2019) Definitions

As used in the Uniform Health-Care Decisions Act:

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F. "health care" means any care, treatment, service or procedure to maintain, diagnose or otherwise affect an individual's physical or mental condition;

G. "health-care decision" means a decision made by an individual or the individual's agent, guardian or surrogate, regarding the individual's health care, including:

(1) selection and discharge of health-care practitioners and institutions;

(2) approval or disapproval of diagnostic tests, surgical procedures, programs of medication and orders not to resuscitate;

(3) directions relating to life-sustaining treatment, including withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment and the termination of life support; and

(4) directions to provide, withhold or withdraw artificial nutrition and hydration and all other forms of health care;

H. "health-care institution" means an institution, facility or agency licensed, certified or otherwise authorized or permitted by law to provide health care in the ordinary course of business;

I. "health-care practitioner" means an individual licensed, certified or otherwise authorized or permitted by law to provide health care in the ordinary course of business or practice of a profession;

K. "life-sustaining treatment" means any medical treatment or procedure without which the individual is likely to die within a relatively short time, as determined to a reasonable degree of medical certainty by the primary care practitioner;

L. "person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, joint venture, government, governmental subdivision, agency or instrumentality or any other legal or commercial entity;

M. "physician" means an individual authorized to practice medicine or osteopathy;

O. "primary care practitioner" means a health-care practitioner designated by an individual or the individual's agent, guardian or surrogate to have primary responsibility for the individual's health care;

R. "qualified health-care professional" means a health-care practitioner who is a physician, physician assistant, nurse practitioner, nurse, psychologist or social worker;

S. "reasonably available" means readily able to be contacted without undue effort and willing and able to act in a timely manner considering the urgency of the patient's health-care needs;

U. "supervising health-care practitioner" means the primary care practitioner, or if there is no primary care practitioner or if the primary care practitioner is not reasonably available, the health-care practitioner who has undertaken primary responsibility for an individual's health care; and

NM Stat § 24-7A-7 (2019) Obligations of health-care practitioner

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E. A health-care practitioner may decline to comply with an individual instruction or health-care decision for reasons of conscience. A health-care institution may decline to comply with an individual instruction or health-care decision if the instruction or decision is contrary to a policy of the health-care institution that is expressly based on reasons of conscience and if the policy was timely communicated to the patient or to a person then authorized to make health-care decisions for the patient.

F. A health-care practitioner or health-care institution may decline to comply with an individual instruction or health-care decision that requires medically ineffective health care or health care contrary to generally accepted health-care standards applicable to the health-care practitioner or health-care institution. "Medically ineffective health care" means treatment that would not offer the patient any significant benefit, as determined by a health-care practitioner.

G. A health-care practitioner or health-care institution that declines to comply with an individual instruction or health-care decision shall:

(1) promptly so inform the patient, if possible, and any person then authorized to make health-care decisions for the patient;

(2) provide continuing care to the patient until a transfer can be effected; and

(3) unless the patient or person then authorized to make health-care decisions for the patient refuses assistance, immediately make all reasonable efforts to assist in the transfer of the patient to another health-care practitioner or health-care institution that is willing to comply with the individual instruction or decision.

NM Stat § 24-7A-9 (2019) Immunities

A. A health-care provider or health-care institution acting in good faith and in accordance with generally accepted health-care standards applicable to the health-care provider or health-care institution is not subject to civil or criminal liability or to discipline for unprofessional conduct for:

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(4) declining to comply with a health-care directive as permitted by Subsection E or F of Section 24-7A-7 NMSA 1978; or