Deb Haaland toured Presbyterian Española Hospital and met with staff to spotlight the pressures on rural health care, especially the threat posed by proposed Medicaid cuts. The hospital — serving the Española Valley since 1948 — now treats more than one-third of patients through Medicaid and has repurposed its former emergency department into an Addiction Medicine clinic amid a local overdose crisis. Haaland emphasized her statewide listening tour and her record on expanding health access and workforce support.
Haaland Tours Rural Española Hospital, Warns Medicaid Cuts Could Devastate Care
Deb Haaland visited the Presbyterian Española Hospital during a campaign stop. (Photo/Campaign)
Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo), the Democratic nominee for governor of New Mexico, toured Presbyterian Española Hospital on Sunday, meeting with hospital leaders and frontline medical staff to examine the pressures facing rural health care in the region.
Tour Highlights
Haaland began her visit in the hospital's Addiction Medicine clinic — a space repurposed from the former emergency department — and toured Presbyterian's mobile clinics, which deliver routine care, wellness checks and immunizations to outlying communities.
Roundtable Focus
The day concluded with a roundtable discussion that centered on the fragile finances of rural hospitals, workforce shortages, transportation barriers for patients and the potential impact of proposed Medicaid reductions on services and access.
"I am grateful for the services that Presbyterian Española Hospital provides to the rural communities in the area, especially the life-saving substance use treatment that helps families address this heartbreaking reality," Haaland said. "But, right now those services are under direct attack from Trump and Republicans' cuts to Medicaid."
Haaland added: "I know what it's like to wait hours for health care or drive long distances to get the care my family needs. As governor, I will be committed to standing up for our rural communities and working to provide health care for all New Mexicans."
Local Context
Presbyterian Española Hospital has served the Española Valley and Rio Arriba County since 1948. Medicaid covers more than one-third of the hospital's patients, leaving the facility particularly exposed to reductions in Medicaid funding. In June 2025, as Congress debated President Donald Trump's tax and spending legislation, an analysis identified Presbyterian Española as one of 15 New Mexico hospitals whose reliance on Medicaid could put them at risk from proposed cuts.
Rio Arriba County is also facing a severe substance-use crisis: the county's overdose death rate is nearly three times the statewide rate. To respond, the hospital converted its former emergency department into an Addiction Medicine clinic, supported in part by the state's Rural Health Care Delivery Fund.
Campaign And Policy Background
On the campaign trail, Haaland says she has visited all 33 New Mexico counties and repeatedly heard concerns about health care access: staffing shortages in Gallup, transportation barriers for Tribal citizens, families traveling long distances for specialists, and small businesses unable to afford employee coverage. She has also cited her own experience using Medicaid as a single parent.
During her time in Congress, Haaland backed efforts to strengthen the Affordable Care Act, expand medical residency programs and address workforce shortages. As U.S. Secretary of the Interior, she worked on initiatives to expand mental health resources in schools and increase healthcare access for Tribal communities.
Why This Matters
With Medicaid funding, access to care and the future of rural hospitals at stake in New Mexico's gubernatorial race, Haaland's visit highlights how federal policy proposals could directly affect local hospitals and the patients who depend on them.
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