The governor of New Mexico has initiated a campaign to recruit physicians from Texas
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham has unveiled a new initiative designed to attract Texas medical professionals, particularly those affected by the state’s restrictive abortion laws, to relocate to New Mexico.
In a letter released online and featured as a full-page advertisement in several major Texas newspapers—including the Austin American-Statesman, Dallas Morning News, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Houston Chronicle, and San Antonio Express-News—Governor Lujan Grisham introduced the “Free to Provide” campaign. The campaign aims to encourage Texas practitioners to move to New Mexico, where reproductive healthcare restrictions are less stringent.
“Legal restrictions on healthcare in Texas have placed a heavy burden on medical practitioners, particularly those barred by law from offering comprehensive reproductive care,” Lujan Grisham wrote. “It must be distressing to see a severe abortion ban used as a political tool, limiting your ability to practice freely.”
Lujan Grisham, a Democrat serving as governor since 2019, emphasized New Mexico’s commitment to safeguarding medical freedoms. She also highlighted the state’s appealing climate, natural beauty, and robust medical community.
“You have my assurance: I will always support the fundamental right of health workers to provide care in New Mexico,” she assured.
New Mexico maintains legal protections for abortion and health practitioners who provide these services. A study by the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health advocacy nonprofit, revealed that 14,200 Texans traveled to New Mexico for abortion care in 2023, marking a 260 percent increase in the state’s abortion services since 2020.
Texas’ abortion restrictions, known as Senate Bill 8, went into effect in 2021, prohibiting abortions after six weeks of gestation. The situation worsened following the 2022 Dobbs decision, which overturned Roe v. Wade, leading to a near-total abortion ban in Texas. In May, the Texas Supreme Court upheld the state’s abortion ban after a lawsuit sought clarity on emergency exceptions.
The “Free to Provide” campaign was initially promoted in July with billboard advertisements around the Texas Medical Center in Houston. The campaign’s website offers a
range of resources for prospective job seekers, including information on licensing, loan repayment, a rural tax credit program, scholarship opportunities, and a guide to New Mexico’s cultural and public resources, along with a job board.
