New Mexico lawmaker criticizes state insurance superintendent for approving premium increase

Source New Mexico · Patrick Lohmann · September 2, 2026

Legislative Finance Committee Chair New Mexico Rep. Nathan Small (D-Las Cruces) said Sept. 2, 2026, that he was “shocked and deeply disappointed” in the state’s insurance regulator for approving a 24.4% increase on average premiums for residents who purchase health coverage through BeWell. (Danielle Prokop/Source NM) New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee Chair Rep. Nathan Small (D-Las Cruces) on Wednesday criticized the state’s insurance regulator for approving a steep premium hike for New Mexicans who purchase health coverage on the state’s exchange. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

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The Office of the Superintendent of Insurance, which is tasked with vetting and approving proposed rate increases, announced Tuesday that it had approved a 24.4% average increase for roughly 80,000 New Mexicans who receive coverage through BeWell, the state’s insurance marketplace. The increases will take effect in January.

In a statement alongside the announcement, OSI Superintendent Alice Kane attributed the increase in premiums to inflation, rising healthcare costs and other factors. She also said that while the new increase was above the national average of 15%, New Mexico’s average premium costs remain in line with other states.

But Small, in a statement Wednesday, criticized Kane’s office for not consulting lawmakers before approving the change and also for not negotiating a better price. He said the state has more leverage than the office brought to bear in negotiations because of how much state funding subsidizes healthcare premiums.

“The state is a major purchaser and funder of healthcare, which gives us a strong voice and negotiating power to demand reasonable rates, transparency, and accountability,” he said. “This approval is shocking and deeply disappointing, since our investments were intended to help families afford care, not increase profit margins for insurance companies.”

In recent legislative sessions, the Legislature established a fund to fully replace the federal Enhanced Premium Tax Credit, which expired at the end of 2025, in addition to other existing state subsidies for BeWell customers. Those subsidies regularly reduce premiums of $845 or more to as low as $10 for lowest-income patients, according to a recent Legislative Finance Committee report.

Kane, in an emailed statement to Source NM, said she is required under law to approve increases that are “actuarially sound,” which means it raises enough funds to pay future healthcare costs. She said the increase was based largely on higher-than-expected claims in New Mexico in 2025, which is what federal law requires insurers to base 2027 proposed increases on.

She also said her office did push back on carriers, including twice prompting them to revise their analyses and reduce rate increases.

The LFC has asked to meet with Kane to further discuss the rate increase, “and I look forward to this discussion,” she said.

Small said the OSI needs to give a clear explanation to both the Legislature and the public about what is driving the premium increases and whether the office considered alternatives to such a large rate hike. He also said the office needs to provide a fuller accounting of how the Legislature’s “affordability investments are being utilized to keep costs down for families”

September 3, 2026 9:47 am This story has been updated since publication to include comment from Insurance Superintendent Alice Kane.

Read the full story at Source New Mexico