by Leah Romero, Source New Mexico
February 4, 2026
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez joined a group of state prosecutors this week in challenging the Trump Administration’s proposed repeal of minimum staffing standards in long-term care facilities across the country.
Torrez joined 17 other attorneys general in a letter sent to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Director Dr. Mehmet Oz Monday calling for nursing facility standards to remain in effect to protect residents.
“Scaling back critical care for those who reside in long-term care facilities is irresponsible and renders one of our most vulnerable populations at significant risk of declined health, increased instances of emergencies and more,” Torrez said in a statement. “It is absolutely essential to the health and well-being of patients that we safeguard these standards and regulations to protect our seniors.”
The Nursing Home Reform Initiative was established in May 2024 and required facilities to have a registered nurse on site 24/7 and set a minimum amount of time for certified nurse assistants to spend per resident each day. According to a news release from the U.S. Health and Human Services Department in early December 2025, the department repealed portions of the initiative for “disproportionately” burdening long-term facilities in rural and Tribal areas. Kennedy criticized the minimum staffing standards for creating a “one-size-fits-all” mandate that he said does not support patients.
“Safe, high-quality care is essential, but rigid, one-size-fits-all mandates fail patients,” Kennedy said. “This Administration will safeguard access to care by removing federal barriers—not by imposing requirements that limit patient choice.”
In the letter sent to the departments, the coalition of attorneys general noted that higher numbers of quality staff are associated with more positive health outcomes for residents and fewer medical emergencies or hospitalizations, saving hundreds of millions of Medicare dollars.
The letter also points out that because several states, such as California and Massachusetts, already have long-term care facility staffing requirements, repealing the nationwide standards would create quality of care gaps in other states.
The coalition urged the administration to adopt “replacement” standards to ensure facilities do not take advantage of the system and cut corners to patient care. However, the letter also requests that any proposed federal regulations not hinder states from setting higher standards for long-term resident staffing.
“Nursing care costs are typically the largest expense of any long-term care facility. As a result, without appropriate checks, owners are incentivized to cut staffing and operate at insufficient staffing levels while the nursing home violates its legal duties to operate with adequate staffing and provide required care,” the letter reads.
Source New Mexico is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Source New Mexico maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Julia Goldberg for questions: info@sourcenm.com.
