A. Any person, firm or corporation, including an insurance carrier, making any
payment to a patient or to his attorney, heirs or legal representative as compensation for
the injury sustained, after the filing and receipt of written notice of the lien, as aforesaid,
and without paying the hospital asserting the lien the amount of its lien or that portion of
the lien which can be satisfied out of the money due under any final judgment or
contract of compromise or settlement, less payment of the amount of any prior liens,
shall be liable to the hospital for the amount that the hospital was entitled to receive.
B. Liability of the person, firm or corporation for the satisfaction of the hospital lien
shall continue for a period of one year after the date of any payment of any money to
the patient, his heirs or legal representatives as damages or under a contract of
compromise or settlement. Any hospital may enforce its lien by a suit at law against the
person, firm or corporation making the payment. In the event of a suit to enforce a lien
the hospital may recover a reasonable attorney's fee and the costs of filing and
recording the lien.
History: 1953 Comp., § 61-9-3, enacted by Laws 1961, ch. 227, § 3.
ANNOTATIONS
Running of limitation period. — This section makes payment to the patient the act
that triggers the running of the one-year limitation period. Regents of Univ. of N.M. v.
Fireman's Fund Ins. Cos., 1986-NMSC-006, 103 N.M. 709, 712 P.2d 1371.
The statute of limitations runs from the time the court orders disbursement of insurance
policy proceeds, not the date that the proceeds are deposited in the court registry.
Schroeder v. Mem'l Med. Ctr., 1997-NMSC-046, 123 N.M. 719, 945 P.2d 449.
A public hospital has the authority to reduce the amount of a lien. — Courts may
lack the equitable or discretionary power to void or reduce public hospital liens without
the hospital’s agreement and absent a good faith dispute, but a public hospital has the
authority to reduce undisputed obligations with patient-debtors. Hem v. Toyota Motor
Corp., 2015-NMSC-024, overruling in part Gutierrez v. Gutierrez, 1983-NMSC-016, 99
N.M. 333, 657 P.2d 1182.
In interpleader proceeding, where plaintiff’s first attorney agreed to give up his statutory
priority over settlement funds, so the university of New Mexico hospital (UNMH) would
be paid first, in exchange for the hospital agreeing to accept a lesser amount for
plaintiff’s outstanding medical bills, the New Mexico supreme court held that the first
clause of N.M. Const. Art. IV, Sec. 32 is strictly a limitation on the legislature, and
UNMH, as a state hospital, is not constitutionally prohibited from compromising
undisputed obligations with patient-debtors. Hem v. Toyota Motor Corp., 2015-NMSC-
024, overruling in part Gutierrez v. Gutierrez, 1983-NMSC-016, 99 N.M. 333, 657 P.2d
1182.
Court lacks authority to void or reduce liens. — The district court lacks equitable or
discretionary power to void or reduce the public hospital liens which are created
pursuant to this article. Gutierrez v. Gutierrez, 1983-NMSC-01699 N.M. 333, 657 P.2d
1182.
"Legal representative". — An attorney is a "legal representative" for purposes of
receiving payment under this section and to commence the running of the statute of
limitations therein. Regents of Univ. of N.M. v. Lacey, 1988-NMSC-086, 107 N.M. 742,
764 P.2d 873.
"Payment of any money" for purposes of Subsection B occurred when an insurer
delivered a settlement check to a personal injury victim, and not on the date when the
check was deposited in a bank. Regents of Univ. of N.M. v. Lacey, 1988-NMSC-086,
107 N.M. 742, 764 P.2d 873.
Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 41 C.J.S. Hospitals § 15.
Notes of Decisions
Regents of Univ. of NM v. Lacey, 764 P.2d 873 (N.M. 1988).
· cites it 16× “Liberty Mutual moved to dismiss pursuant to NMSA 1978, Section 48-8-3(B). That section provides: “Liability of the person, firm or corporation for the satisfaction of the hospital lien shall continue for a period of one year after date of any payment of any money to the patient,…”
Storey v. Univ. of New Mexico Hosp./BCMC, 730 P.2d 1187 (N.M. 1986).
· cites it 4× “Section 48-8-3(A) states: Any person, firm or corporation, including an insurance carrier, making any payment to a patient * * * as compensation for the injury sustained * * * shall [under specified circumstances] be liable to the hospital for the amount that the hospital was…”
Schroeder v. Mem'l Med. Ctr., 945 P.2d 449 (N.M. 1997).
· cites it 6× “He advances the theory that the statute of limitations is tolled from the date State Farm deposited $25,000.”
St. Joseph Healthcare Sys. v. Travelers Companies, 893 P.2d 1007 (N.M. Ct. App. 1995).
· cites it 2× “However, NMSA 1978, Section 48-8-3(A) (Repl. Pamp.1987), requires the affirmative action of establishing a lien: Any person, firm or corporation, including an insurance carrier, making any payment .”
Gutierrez v. Gutierrez, 657 P.2d 1182 (N.M. 1983).
· cites it 2× “In fact, Section 48-8-3(B) provides that “[a]ny hospital may enforce its lien by a suit at law * * * [Emphasis added.”
Wright v. First Nat. Bank in Albuquerque, 941 P.2d 498 (N.M. 1997).
· cites it 2× “Although the Act provides for attorneys’ fees for the lienholder when these fees are incurred to enforce the lien, they are not allowable here where the Hospital is enforcing a lien which it was not entitled to file in the first place.”
Sw. Cmty. Health Servs. v. Safeco Ins., 775 P.2d 1287 (N.M. 1989).
· cites it 2× “Southwest, on the other hand, contends that the lien was created as a matter of law when Safeco’s Albuquerque office received actual notice of the lien on March 2, 1981, and thus when Safeco settled with Day, Safeco did so at its peril, and by the provisions of NMSA 1978,…”
Wright v. First Nat'l Bank, 919 P.2d 1099 (N.M. Ct. App. 1996).
· cites it 3× “However, under the hospital lien statute, NMSA 1978, Section 48-8-3(B) (Repl. Pamp.1995), if a hospital hen claimant is required to enforce its hen claim through legal proceedings “the hospital may recover a reasonable attorney’s fee and the costs of filing and recording the hen.”
N.M. Stat. § 48-8-3(A): 3 cases
Storey v. Univ. of New Mexico Hosp./BCMC, 730 P.2d 1187 (N.M. 1986).
“Section 48-8-3(A) states: Any person, firm or corporation, including an insurance carrier, making any payment to a patient * * * as compensation for the injury sustained * * * shall [under specified circumstances] be liable to the hospital for the amount that the hospital was…”
St. Joseph Healthcare Sys. v. Travelers Companies, 893 P.2d 1007 (N.M. Ct. App. 1995).
“However, NMSA 1978, Section 48-8-3(A) (Repl. Pamp.1987), requires the affirmative action of establishing a lien: Any person, firm or corporation, including an insurance carrier, making any payment .”
Sw. Cmty. Health Servs. v. Safeco Ins., 775 P.2d 1287 (N.M. 1989).
“Southwest, on the other hand, contends that the lien was created as a matter of law when Safeco’s Albuquerque office received actual notice of the lien on March 2, 1981, and thus when Safeco settled with Day, Safeco did so at its peril, and by the provisions of NMSA 1978,…”
N.M. Stat. § 48-8-3(B): 5 cases
Regents of Univ. of NM v. Lacey, 764 P.2d 873 (N.M. 1988).
“Liberty Mutual moved to dismiss pursuant to NMSA 1978, Section 48-8-3(B). That section provides: “Liability of the person, firm or corporation for the satisfaction of the hospital lien shall continue for a period of one year after date of any payment of any money to the patient,…”
Schroeder v. Mem'l Med. Ctr., 945 P.2d 449 (N.M. 1997).
“He advances the theory that the statute of limitations is tolled from the date State Farm deposited $25,000.”
Gutierrez v. Gutierrez, 657 P.2d 1182 (N.M. 1983).
“In fact, Section 48-8-3(B) provides that “[a]ny hospital may enforce its lien by a suit at law * * * [Emphasis added.”
Wright v. First Nat. Bank in Albuquerque, 941 P.2d 498 (N.M. 1997).
“Although the Act provides for attorneys’ fees for the lienholder when these fees are incurred to enforce the lien, they are not allowable here where the Hospital is enforcing a lien which it was not entitled to file in the first place.”
Wright v. First Nat'l Bank, 919 P.2d 1099 (N.M. Ct. App. 1996).
“However, under the hospital lien statute, NMSA 1978, Section 48-8-3(B) (Repl. Pamp.1995), if a hospital hen claimant is required to enforce its hen claim through legal proceedings “the hospital may recover a reasonable attorney’s fee and the costs of filing and recording the hen.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.