Section 27-5-16 - Department; payments; cooperation.
27-5-16. Department; payments; cooperation.
A. The department shall not decrease the amount of any assistance payments made to the hospitals or health care providers of this state pursuant to law because of any financial reimbursement made to ambulance services, hospitals or health care providers for indigent or medicaid eligible patients as provided in the Indigent Hospital and County Health Care Act [27-5-1 NMSA 1978].
B. The department shall cooperate with each board in furnishing information or assisting in the investigation of any person to determine whether he meets the qualifications of an indigent patient as defined in the Indigent Hospital and County Health Care Act.
C. The department shall ensure that the sole community provider payment and the reimbursement to hospitals made under the state medicaid program do not exceed what would have been paid for under medicare payment principles. In the event the sole community provider payment and medicaid reimbursement to hospitals would exceed medicare payment principles, the department shall reduce the sole community provider payment prior to making any reduction in reimbursement to hospitals made under the state medicaid program.