My children could lose their future without Medicaid
October 1, 2025I’m not a policymaker or an expert in economics. I’m a lifelong New Mexican, born and raised in Lincoln County, living in Las Cruces for 30-plus years. I am a mother of three young adults who, like many families in our state, depend on Medicaid for their health and future.
That is why I am speaking out, as our state begins its a special legislative session. When I think about what could happen if Medicaid is stripped away from my family, I feel the same fear I felt in 2014 when my oldest child texted me to say he was thinking about ending his life.
That day, my son was 14. He was depressed, anxious and afraid to leave his room. It was the kind of message no parent ever wants to receive. But in the middle of that darkness, we had one lifeline: We had access to care through Medicaid. Even though there were waitlists, and it took time to find the right doctor and medication, we got help. We could hold onto hope.
That wasn’t the only time Medicaid changed everything for us.
My youngest son was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at just 13 years old. It’s a chronic condition that affects every part of his body and will likely require lifelong treatment. Medicaid made it possible to see specialists, get the tests he needed and access the medication that keeps him going. Without it, we would have been left with impossible choices: pay thousands of dollars out of pocket or let him go untreated.
My two older children, now in their 20s, rely entirely on Medicaid for mental health treatment. Losing it would mean no therapist, no psychiatrist, no medications. Anyone who has lived with depression or anxiety knows that going without treatment is not an option. This is what keeps me up at night. If Medicaid disappears, so does the care that has kept my family alive and together.
Federal changes set to begin in just a few short months will undo my family’s progress, and all the gains our state has made in expanding access. Premiums on BeWell are expected to rise by $1,800 per year on average, forcing tens of thousands to drop coverage. Work-reporting requirements for Medicaid could strip coverage from 88,000 adults, not because they are unwilling to work, but because of paperwork barriers. And by 2026, 9,680 lawfully present immigrants will lose access to Medicaid altogether.
The good news is that New Mexico has a tool to fight back: the Healthcare Affordability Fund. Lawmakers created the Fund in 2021 to keep coverage within reach for people who fall through the cracks of Medicaid or job-based insurance. For three years, it has worked. But with over 100,000 New Mexicans expected to lose coverage due to these federal cuts, the fund urgently needs more resources to meet this moment.
During the special session, lawmakers must increase funding for the Healthcare Affordability Fund. That means using it to replace the federal subsidies that are expiring, building a coverage bridge for immigrants who will be locked out, and supporting clinics and hospitals that will face higher uncompensated care costs.
I ask our leaders to remember families like mine and do everything in their power to make sure no parent has to choose between keeping their lights on and keeping their child alive. Please, don’t take us backward.
Renée Beltran, a mother of three, lives in Las Cruces.
Published originally from the Santa Fe New Mexican