New Mexico Register / Volume XXXVI, Issue 23 /
December 9, 2025
NOTICE OF PUBLIC RULE HEARING AND BOARD MEETING
The New Mexico Board of Acupuncture and Oriental
Medicine and the Regulation and Licensing Department will hold a rule hearing
on Friday, January 16th, 2026, immediately followed by a meeting of
the board for adoption of the proposed rules listed below. Public participation is welcomed, and comments
may be submitted in writing during the public comment period, or in person
during the public rule hearing. The
hearing and subsequent meeting will take place at the Regulation and Licensing
Department, Toney Anaya Building, 2nd Floor - Hearing Room #1 located
at 2550 Cerrillos Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87505.
The hearing and subsequent Board of Acupuncture and
Oriental Medicine meeting may also be accessed virtually via Microsoft Teams.
Meeting Link: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/2859042124541?p=TEheHmQd2WWbgBz9SLOr
by Meeting ID: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-teams/join-a-meeting
Meeting ID: 244 013 587 539 3
Passcode: HV7CL3Cn
or
Join by Phone: +1 505-312-4308
Phone conference ID: 144 882 947#
The purpose of the rule hearing is to consider the
initiation of rulemaking for the following rules:
Rule 16.2.9 NMAC - CONTINUING EDUCATION
Rule 16.2.14 NMAC - GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
FOR EXTERNS
Rule 16.2.16. NMAC - CERTIFIED AURICULAR
DETOXIFICATION SPECIALIST RENEWAL
Rule 16.13.2 NMAC - APPLICATION PROCESSING FEE
On Friday, December 9, 2025, copies of the proposed
rules may be obtained through the New Mexico Board of Acupuncture and Oriental
Medicine website at https://www.rld.nm.gov/boards-and-commissions/individual-boards-and-commissions/acupuncture-and-oriental-medicine/or
by contacting the Senior Manager, Dr. Arthur Culpepper at (505) 470-2298.
The New Mexico Board of Acupuncture and Oriental
Medicine and the Regulation and Licensing Department will begin accepting written
public comment regarding the proposed rule changes beginning Tuesday, December 9,
2025, 9:00 a.m. and ending Friday, January 9, 2026, 9:00 a.m. Written public comment may be submitted either
by email to acuormedboard@rld.nm.gov or by postal mail to the following
address:
Attn: New Mexico Board of Acupuncture and Oriental
Medicine
P.O. Box 25101
Santa Fe, NM 87504
Written comments received during the public comment
period (December 9, 2025 - January 9, 2026) will be posted to the website page
linked above. Public comments will also
be accepted during the rule hearing and may be submitted in writing or presented
orally by those attending in-person by January 9, 2026. The members of the New Mexico Board of
Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine will not enter substantive discussion of
public comments during the rule hearing but will consider and deliberate any
public comment during the regular board meeting immediately following the
conclusion of the public rule hearing.
The agenda for the New Mexico Board of Acupuncture and
Oriental Medicine regular meeting, which will begin immediately after the
public rule hearing, will be available no less than 72 hours prior to the
meeting, and available on the website above or by contacting the board Senior
Manager, Dr. Arthur Culpepper at (505) 470-2298.
If you are an individual with a disability who needs a
reader, amplifier, qualified sign language interpreter, or any other form of
auxiliary aid or service to attend or participate in the hearing or the regular
board meeting, please contact the Senior Manager of Business Operations, Dr.
Arthur Culpepper at (505) 470-2298 at least 7 days prior to the rules hearing
and regular board meeting. Public documents,
including the proposed rules, meeting agenda and minutes, can be provided in
various accessible formats.
For inclement weather: If the New Mexico state offices are placed on
a two-hour delay to inclement weather, the rule hearing will be pushed back two
hours from the noticed hearing time. If New
Mexico state offices are closed due to inclement weather, the rule hearing will
be rescheduled as soon as possible.
Statutory Authority:
The proposed
rule changes are authorized by the Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Practice Act,
Sections 61-14A-1 through - 22 NMSA 1978, which provides explicit authority for
the board to promulgate rules to protect public health and safety and carry out
the provisions of the Act. The
rulemaking and public rule hearing is governed by the State Rules Act, Sections
14-4-1 through 14-4-11 NMSA 1978, and the Default Procedural Rule for
Rulemaking promulgated by the New Mexico Department of Justice, Parts 1.24.25.1
through 1.24.25.16 NMAC.
Purpose of
Proposed Rules:
The proposed
rule changes are intended to add an administrative fee for electronic
processing to allow the board to pay for the ongoing maintenance and licensing of
the NM-Plus system. More generally, the
proposed rule changes are intended to provide greater clarity in existing
regulatory and statutory requirements, ensure continued high levels of
professionalism among licensees and certificate holders, and to generally
satisfy the Board’s statutory obligation to promote, preserve and protect the
public health, safety and welfare.
Summary of
Proposed Changes:
Rule 16.13.2.8 NMAC - Application Processing Fees
Changes to this rule will allow for a ten dollar ($10)
administrative fee for electronic processing per year and ($35) returned
electronic check or electronic checks processing fee to fund the ongoing
maintenance and licensing of the NM-Plus system.
Rule 16.2.9.8 NMAC - Continuing Education
Changes to this rule will allow an individual who
submits records or a sworn affidavit on their renewal application to
demonstrate compliance with continuing education requirements but is found to
be non-compliant during a random audit will be subject to fines and other
penalties determined appropriate by the board.
Rule 16.2.14.8 NMAC - General Requirements for Externs
Changes to this rule will allow an extern to extend
the timeframe from twelve (12) months to twenty-four (24) months, from both the
date of graduation (from Board approved program) to beginning to externships;
and from beginning of an externship.
Rule 16.2.16.13 NMAC - Certified Auricular
Detoxification Specialist Renewal
Changes to this rule will allow a certified auricular
detoxification specialist (CADS) to not require supervision after five (5)
years of certification.