A leadership choice beyond the ballot
Writing in The Santa Fe New Mexican, Heidi Krapfl and Stephanie Moraga-McHaley argue that the health secretary's appointment, though not itself on the ballot, will shape New Mexicans' health for years. The two spent a combined 40 years as epidemiologists at the department.
The November 3, 2026, governor's race pits Democrat Deb Haaland, a former U.S. congresswoman and interior secretary, against Republican Gregg Hull, who served three terms as mayor of Rio Rancho. According to New Mexico PBS, they are seeking to succeed Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, whose term limit requires her to leave office at year's end.
Gina DeBlassie currently leads the Department of Health. Previously Lujan Grisham's public health advisor, she became interim secretary in November 2024 and won unanimous Senate confirmation in March 2025. The department credits her with more than 30 years of healthcare experience and a key role in creating both the Health Care Authority and the Rural Health Care Delivery Fund.
Different responsibilities for care and prevention
Krapfl and Moraga-McHaley want the next governor to give the state's two health agencies distinct priorities: individual care at the Health Care Authority and population-wide prevention at the Department of Health. They say the latter has too often taken on individual healthcare responsibilities at the expense of public health. Most secretaries they worked under were doctors or lawyers; while they see value in both backgrounds, they want sustained leadership on reducing the state's overall burden of illness.
Their proposed "divide and conquer" approach would put a secretary dedicated to individual health in charge of the Health Care Authority, making it the primary safety net. That work includes ensuring people can receive timely treatment for illness or injury through clinical care, surgery and medications. The authority's mission emphasizes accessible, high-quality, cost-effective care and safety-net services that address the whole person.
Launched July 1, 2024, the Health Care Authority brought together the Human Services Department and several programs previously housed elsewhere. Those included the General Services Department's State Employee Benefits team; the Department of Health's Developmental Disabilities Supports Division and Division of Health Improvement; and the Office of Superintendent of Insurance's Health Care Affordability Fund.
The authors envision the Department of Health as a protective counterpart to that safety net, led by a secretary focused on public health strategies. Its mission centers on promoting health and well-being and improving outcomes for all New Mexicans. They argue that preventing illness and injury, identifying structural gaps and determining which populations face the greatest risks of premature death or years lived with disability belong at the center of its work.
Overdose and infection data illustrate the challenges
The authors identify opioid overdoses and increasing heat-related illness as long-term problems that require proactive attention to environmental and socioeconomic conditions.
Department of Health data reported by Searchlight New Mexico in July 2026 show that about 900 people died from opioid overdoses in the state in 2025. That was a 21% increase from the previous year, while overdose deaths nationally were declining. New Mexico ranked fourth among states for its overdose death rate, and fentanyl was involved in more than two-thirds of those deaths.
Syphilis data show both a substantial burden and recent declines. An October 15, 2025, Department of Health public health order cited CDC rankings placing New Mexico second among states for both congenital syphilis and primary and secondary syphilis rates in 2023.
The congenital syphilis rate reached 422.9 cases per 100,000 live births in 2023, up 874% from 2018. Reported cases then declined from 91 in 2023 to 74 in 2024. Over the same one-year period, the rate of primary and secondary syphilis fell 31%, from 36.5 to 25.3 cases per 100,000 people.
The public health work they want prioritized
A secretary with a strong public health background could give priority to outbreak surveillance, vital statistics and the state laboratories used to monitor infectious and chronic diseases, Krapfl and Moraga-McHaley write. They also point to statewide programs that distribute childhood and adult immunizations, prevent tobacco use, support nutrition and screen for chronic disease.
Their case for a long-term prevention strategy includes an economic argument. Citing the Pew Charitable Trusts, they say investment in public health supports productivity, economic growth and community cost savings. An analysis drawing on 34 studies of public health interventions over several decades found savings of about $14 for every dollar invested.
