New Mexico Register / Volume XXXVII,
Issue 6 / March 24, 2026
NOTICE
OF PUBLIC HEARING
The
New Mexico Department of Health will hold a public hearing on the emergency amendment
of sections of rule
7.30.12 NMAC, “Emergency Medications in Schools”. The hearing will be held on Friday, May 15, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. via the Microsoft Teams Internet-based
video conferencing system, and via telephone. Members of the public who wish to
submit public comment regarding the amendments will be able to do so via video
conference and via telephone during the course of the hearing, and by
submitting written comment.
On February 23,
2026, the Department filed emergency amendments with the State Records
Administrator to enact the following revisions to sections of 7.30.12 NMAC:
* “Definitions” (section 7): replaced previous
rule definition of “trained personnel” with statutory definition from the
Emergency Medication in Schools Act at section 22-33-2, NMSA 1978, effectively
removing the rule requirement that persons who administer epinephrine in
schools be designated by a school nurse, and allowing the designation to be
made by a school principal or school leader; replaced “means” with “includes”
in definition of “governing body”, consistent with statutory definition;
* “Emergency Medications” (section 8): removed
references to “school nurse” at sections 8(A)(3), 8(B), and 8(C), effectively authorizing
schools that are without a school nurse to obtain medications from a pharmacy
and decide whether to maintain and administer emergency medications; added
“school leader” at section 8(D)(3), authorizing records to be kept by either
the school nurse or school leader;
* “Training” (section 9): added “schools” to
section 9(A), in recognition that both schools and school districts may decide
whether to maintain emergency medications; removed "PED licensed” at
section 8(A)(1) and (A)(4), in recognition that not all school nurses are
licensed by PED;
* “Administration of Emergency Medications”
(section 10): removed “PED licensed” from section 10(A)(1); added “school
leader” at 10(B)(7), authorizing both school nurses and school leaders to
maintain logs; and
* “Prevention” (section 11): replaced “school
district” with “school” at section 11(C), in reference to schools accessing
NMDOH resources; and updated the listed website for NMDOH Office of School and
Adolescent Health.
The purpose of the
amendment of 7.30.12 NMAC is to implement the Emergency Medication in Schools
Act, at sections 22-33-1 through -4, NMSA 1978, which requires the Department
of Health to adopt and promulgate rules concerning the administration of
albuterol and epinephrine in schools.
The legal
authority authorizing the amendment of these rule sections by the Department is
the Department of Health Act, subsection E of section 9-7-6 NMSA 1978, which
authorizes the secretary of the department of health to “...make and adopt such
reasonable and procedural rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry
out the duties of the department and its divisions,”; the Emergency Medication
in Schools Act, at section 22-33-4, NMSA 1978, which requires NMDOH to adopt
rules concerning administration of albuterol and epinephrine in schools; and
the State Rules Act at section 14-4-5.6, NMSA 1978, which authorizes agencies
to adopt emergency rules if “the agency find that the time required to complete
the procedures would … cause an imminent peril to the public health, safety or
welfare”.
The reasons for
the adoption of these emergency rule amendments are as stated in the letter of
Cabinet Secretary, Gina DeBlassie, dated February 20, 2026, which can be
obtained at the web address listed below.
In accordance with the State Rules Act at section 14-4-5.6(E), NMSA
1978, the emergency rule amendments shall remain in effect until a permanent
rule takes effect under the normal rulemaking process, and shall expire if no
permanent rule is adopted within 180 days from the effective date of the emergency
rule.
A free copy of
the full text of the emergency amendments can be obtained online from the New
Mexico Department of Health’s website at
http://nmhealth.org/about/asd/cmo/rules/ or by contacting the Department using
the contact information below.
The public hearing will be conducted to receive public
comment on the amendments. Any
interested member of the public may attend the hearing and may submit data,
views, or arguments on the proposed rule either orally or in writing during the
hearing.
To access the hearing via the Internet: please go to
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-teams/join-a-meeting, then enter the
following meeting i.d. code and passcode where
indicated on the screen: meeting i.d. code 299 572
009 742 99 and passcode 4Vt9MF3e and then click the “Join a meeting” button.
To access the hearing by telephone: please call 1-505-312-4308
and enter phone conference i.d. 709 603 487#
All comments will be recorded.
Written public
comment regarding the proposed rule can be submitted either by e-mail to Jacob
Clark at jacob.clark@doh.nm.gov, or by U.S. postal mail to the following
address:
Jacob Clark
NMDOH OGC
P.O. Box 26110
1190 St. Francis Dr., Suite N-4095
Santa Fe, NM
87502-6110
Written
comments must be received by the close of the public rule hearing on May 15,
2026. All written comments will be
published on the agency website at https://www.nmhealth.org/about/asd/cmo/rules/ within 3 days of receipt, and will
be available at the New Mexico Department of Health for public inspection.
If you are an
individual with a disability who is in need of special
assistance or accommodations to attend or participate in the hearing, please
contact Jacob Clark by telephone at (505) 827-2997. The Department requests at least ten (10)
days’ advance notice to provide special accommodation.