The New Mexico Department of Health announced July 12, that the amount of opioids prescribed in New Mexico have significantly declined, dropping by 5 percent for the first quarter in 2017, compared to last year.

Additionally, benzodiazepine prescriptions decreased by 3 percent over the same period. The drops come after Governor Susana Martinez enacted legislation to make it mandatory for healthcare providers to check a patient’s prescription history in the state’s Prescription Monitoring Program database when prescribing opioids, in an effort to stop doctor shopping for drugs.

There has been a 63 percent increase in providers using the PMP since last year.

“While this is...

The Office of the State Auditor released a report July 12, showing a significant gap in pay between men and women in New Mexico.

According to the report, women who are employed in managerial or policy making roles in New Mexico are paid on average 26 percent less than men in the same positions in the state. The smallest gap, according to the report, is in the service industry where women are still paid about 10 percent less than men.

Besides pay gaps, the report also shows the “category for manual workers of relatively high skill level” is made up of only three percent women.

In addition to showing the disparity between pay for men and women in the workforce, the auditor’s...

SANTA FE —Gov. Susana Martinez announced July 12 that Department of Indian Affairs Cabinet Secretary Kelly Zunie will be stepping down to pursue other opportunities.

“Secretary Zunie has been a strong asset in building and growing our relationships with New Mexico’s tribes, nations and pueblos,” Martinez said. “Her leadership helped us work with Native American communities throughout the state to strengthen schools, improve healthcare and create more economic opportunities for all our families. Her skills and experience will be missed.”

Governor Martinez appointed Zunie as cabinet secretary in November of 2014, and she was the first woman to lead the Department. Since her...

ALBUQUERQUE – Abner Joe, 55, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Shiprock, N.M., pled guilty t in federal court in Albuquerque July 12, to assaulting a federal officer.

Joe was arrested on Aug. 10, 2016, on a criminal complaint charging him with assaulting a federal officer.  According to the complaint, Joe assaulted an officer of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety on Aug. 4, 2016, by spitting on her and threatening her with a hammer and a wooden board. At the time of the assault, the tribal officer was commissioned as a Special Federal Officer by the BIA’s Office of Justice Services.

Joe was indicted on Aug. 23, 2016, and charged with assaulting a...