SANTA FE – A study places New Mexico among the least prepared states for epidemics or other types of public health emergencies due to low public health funding and gaps in staffing.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the study made public last week by the health policy organization Trust for America’s Health shows the state as ranking among the bottom 11.
The study says state’s public health funding has dropped for the past two years.
New Mexico did score well in three of the 11 indicators the study examined. The state received high marks for biosafety training at state labs, high vaccinations rates against the flu and passing a national public health accreditation.
State Health Department officials told the newspaper that the agency could not immediately respond to questions on the report.
