New Mexico Statutes Chapter 27. Public Assistance § 27-7A-2. Definitions

A. “abuse” means:

B. “department” means the department of health;

C. “direct care” means face-to-face services provided or routine and unsupervised physical or financial access to a recipient of services;

D. “employee” means a person employed by or on contract with a provider, either directly or through a third party arrangement to provide direct care.  “Employee” does not include a New Mexico licensed health care professional practicing within the scope of the profession's license or a certified nurse aide;

E. “exploitation” means an unjust or improper use of a person's money or property for another person's profit or advantage, pecuniary or otherwise;

F. “neglect” means, subject to a person's right to refuse treatment and subject to a provider's right to exercise sound medical discretion, the failure of an employee to provide basic needs such as clothing, food, shelter, supervision and care for the physical and mental health of a person or failure by a person that may cause physical or psychological harm;

G. “provider” means an intermediate care facility for the mentally retarded;  a rehabilitation facility;  a home health agency;  a homemaker agency;  a home for the aged or disabled;  a group home;  an adult foster care home;  a case management entity that provides services to elderly people or people with developmental disabilities;  a corporate guardian;  a private residence that provides personal care, adult residential care or natural and surrogate family services provided to persons with developmental disabilities;  an adult daycare center;  a boarding home;  an adult residential care home;  a residential service or habilitation service authorized to be reimbursed by medicaid;  any licensed or medicaid-certified entity or any program funded by the aging and long-term services department that provides respite, companion or personal care services;  programs funded by the children, youth and families department that provide homemaker or adult daycare services;  and any other individual, agency or organization that provides respite care or delivers home- and community-based services to adults or children with developmental disabilities or physical disabilities or to the elderly, but excluding a managed care organization unless the employees of the managed care organization provide respite care, deliver home- and community-based services to adults or children with developmental disabilities or physical disabilities or to the elderly;

H. “registry” means an electronic database that provides information on substantiated employee abuse, neglect or exploitation;  and

I. “secretary” means the secretary of health.