Julie Weinberg
Julie Weinberg was appointed Director of New Mexico’s Medicaid program in June 2011 after serving nine months as Acting Director. As New Mexico’s Medicaid Director, Ms. Weinberg oversees a $3.8 billion comprehensive health insurance program that covers 1 in 4 New Mexicans. The program is the largest purchaser of health care services in the state. Ms. Weinberg has placed an emphasis on the integration of physical and behavioral health services, and payment and delivery reform. She is also working on modernizing the Medicaid program’s structure in order to reduce administrative costs; improve quality of care; improve health outcomes; slow the growth of the Medicaid program’s costs; and prepare the program for expanded enrollment in 2014.
Prior to her work at the State, Ms. Weinberg spent 17 years in the private sector with the fiscal agent for New Mexico’s Medicaid program. During her time there, Ms. Weinberg worked with providers and provider associations; planned and implemented projects to support new Medicaid program initiatives; ran the fiscal agent account; and worked on Medicaid Management Information System (MMIS) development, design and implementation.
For individuals living with complex, often chronic conditions, and their families, palliative care can provide relief from symptoms, improve satisfaction and outcomes, and help address critical mental and spiritual needs during difficult times. Now more than ever, there is growing recognition of the importance of palliative care services for individuals with serious illness, such as advance care planning, pain and symptom management, care coordination, and team-based, multi-disciplinary support. These services can help patients and families cope with the symptoms and stressors of disease, better anticipate and avoid crises, and reduce unnecessary and/or unwanted care. While this model is grounded in evidence that demonstrates improved quality of life, better outcomes, and reduced cost for patients, only a fraction of individuals who could benefit from palliative care receive it. 
