Bill > HB374

This bill modifies the definition of "occurrence" in New Mexico's Medical Malpractice Act, changing how medical malpractice claims are defined and potentially grouped. Specifically, the bill replaces the previous definition that considered an occurrence as "injuries to a patient caused by health care providers' successive acts or omissions that combined concurrently to create a malpractice claim" with a broader definition describing an occurrence as "all claims for damages from all persons arising from harm to a single patient, no matter how many health care providers, errors or omissions contributed to the harm." Additionally, the bill makes minor terminology updates, such as replacing the term "podiatrist" with "podiatric physician" in several sections of the existing law. The change in the occurrence definition could potentially impact how medical malpractice claims are processed, consolidated, and potentially limited, which might affect both healthcare providers and patients in medical liability cases.

Health and Social Services

https://www.nmlegis.gov/Legislation/Legislation?chamber=H&legtype=B&legno=374&year=25