New Mexico task force outlines priorities for Alzheimer's care; Lifespan Respite grant and caregiver supports highlighted

Angelina Flores Montoya, deputy cabinet secretary with the Aging and Long Term Services Department, and Donald (Don) Smithburg/Smithberg of the Alzheimer's Association presented the Alzheimer's and dementia task-force update to the committee, outlining early findings and near-term priorities.

Flores Montoya said the task force (created by House Memorial 53) has convened 13 members representing state agencies, caregiver groups and tribal representatives and has held four meetings since an August kickoff. The group's three core priorities so far are education and awareness, caregiver supports (including respite), and access to services.

On demographics and caregiver burden the presenters cited multiple figures: roughly 426,000 caregivers in New Mexico (about 26 percent of adults) and an estimated 46,000 people identified with Alzheimer's or a related dementia; the presenters clarified that the 46,000 figure corresponds to a subset and was described as representing roughly 12 percent of people age 60 and older in the slides. The speakers emphasized racial and ethnic disparities in dementia prevalence and a severe shortage of specialists and dementia-trained clinicians across rural and tribal areas.

Flores Montoya highlighted existing programs intended to expand access and caregiver supports: a newly staffed Office of Alzheimer's and Dementia; a statewide county-level needs assessment; the New Mexico Care pilot program (which provides financial assistance to family caregivers and is available in all 33 counties); and a Lifespan Respite grant worth $1,200,000 targeted to rural and tribal communities to expand respite services, workforce training and supports. "We were just recently awarded another 3 year grant totaling 1,200,000," she said, describing the grant as one tool to deliver respite vouchers and other services.

Don Smithburg described UNM's research role, noting NIH-funded clinical trials and the availability of PET imaging for research, and announced that the FDA recently approved a blood test that primary-care clinicians will be able to order; he cautioned that CMS must still issue coverage rules, a process that could take 12 to 18 months before broad implementation and payment is in place.

Committee members asked about insurance coverage for diagnostic imaging, the availability of respite centers that accept advanced dementia cases, telehealth expansion to reach rural and frontier communities, and how caregivers can access financial assistance. Officials said the New Mexico Care pilot and voucher-based respite services are being expanded and that the state will produce a report and a multi-year state plan in 2026 with task-force contributions.

The task force will continue to meet through 2026, refine the state plan and make recommendations about workforce development, telehealth expansion and protections for ongoing NIH-funded research in New Mexico.