Author

Lissa Knudsen
Lissa Knudsen was the news editor at the New Mexico Daily Lobo, following a stint as the publication’s public health beat reporter. She also worked as a data analyst for local NPR affiliate KUNM News. Her areas of coverage include politics and policy with an emphasis on racial and gender equity. Knudsen holds a bachelor's degree in health science and a master's degree in program planning and health education. She’s a critical cultural communication doctoral candidate, emphasizing reproductive justice, maternity and health. She is a board member of the New Mexico Public Health Association. Before she realized she was supposed to be a journalist, Knudsen was involved in local politics up until mid-2014, getting into hot water with her bosses as she pushed for transparency and public accountability.
NM Transportation Department is sitting on millions of unspent breathalyzer funds
By: Lissa Knudsen - April 6, 2022
As much as $2.1 million meant to help people pay for interlock devices is sitting in Santa Fe unspent. Word of the fund isn’t always getting out, officials say, and the application process may be hindering those who most need the financial help. The fund comes from an annual $100 fee tacked onto the cost […]
Sexual assault and harassment linked to higher long-term heart attack risk in women
By: Lissa Knudsen - March 14, 2022
Women who have experienced sexual assault and workplace sexual harassment are at higher long-term risk of developing high blood pressure and heart disease, a new study shows. The study, published last month in the Journal of the American Heart Association, analyzed data from one of the largest investigations into risk factors for major chronic disease […]
New Mexico gets rid of the ‘tampon tax’
By: Lissa Knudsen - March 10, 2022
People in New Mexico will no longer have to pay taxes on menstrual pads, tampons and cups as of July 1 — a victory for advocates who’ve been working on the issue for years. A provision to allow for a deduction on retailers’ gross receipts taxes was included in the omnibus tax reform bill that […]
N.M. residents may soon be able to sign up for health coverage while they file their taxes
By: Lissa Knudsen - February 24, 2022
Figuring out your health insurance could become as easy as checking a box on your tax return if a bill the Legislature passed is signed by the governor. Set to take effect next year, New Mexico would be the fifth state in the nation to streamline the process this way. House Bill 95 — dubbed […]
Rise in newborn syphilis cases prompts DOH intervention
By: Lissa Knudsen - December 3, 2021
More babies in the U.S. are being born with syphilis than at any time in the last 20 years, and CDC research indicates that the trend is growing exponentially worse. The latest data show New Mexico has the second-highest rate in the country. The infection is curable. And it’s alarming rise led the New Mexico […]
New DWI-detection tech might alter the law’s disproportionate impacts
By: Lissa Knudsen - November 11, 2021
A mandate for technology in new vehicles that can pull over if the driver is impaired by alcohol was rolled into the infrastructure bill on its way to President Joe Biden. That means once the U.S. National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration figures out the regulations in the next couple of years, all new cars […]
Anti-drunk driving tech to be installed in all new vehicles
By: Lissa Knudsen - November 10, 2021
The infrastructure bill, passed on Friday by the U.S. House includes a provision that mandates new passenger vehicles be equipped with tech to stop drinking and driving. The end goal, supporters say, is to achieve what decades of varied — and often harsh — drunk-driving laws have failed to do: eliminate driving while intoxicated completely. […]
State and city officials aren’t mandating vaccines for first responders
By: Lissa Knudsen - October 28, 2021
New Mexico still hasn’t issued a vaccine requirement for firefighters, emergency medical technicians or paramedics, despite the state recognizing that they are health care workers and, as a matter of their employment, are required to provide direct patient care and enter hospital emergency rooms. In September, Dr. David Scrase, New Mexico’s acting Department of Health […]
Most NM restaurants not applying for alcohol delivery permits
By: Lissa Knudsen - October 20, 2021
New Mexico joined nearly every other state in the nation in legalizing alcohol delivery to homes a couple of weeks ago, but few restaurants have applied for permits so far. Since March 2020 and the pandemic lockdowns, all but seven states have legalized the home delivery of alcohol. Twenty states did so via executive order, […]
‘It’s your gun. It’s your responsibility.’
By: Lissa Knudsen - October 18, 2021
Experts and community members gathered to talk solutions to gun violence in schools and community safety in the Northeast Heights of Albuquerque. In August, 13-year-old Bennie Hargrove was fatally shot by a fellow 8th-grade student at Downtown Albuquerque’s Washington Middle School. Newly appointed Rep. Pamelya Herndon said if the parent of the shooter had kept […]
New Mexico begins alcohol deliveries despite public health concerns
By: Lissa Knudsen - October 12, 2021
Lawrence Medina was 12 years old when he started to drink alcohol, and he drank heavily throughout his adolescence. He didn’t keep track of how much he drank, he said, just that he did it everyday. “When it came to drinking beer and liquor,” he said, “I drank to oblivion. You know what I mean? […]
New Mexico EMTs and firefighters still not required to get vaxed
By: Lissa Knudsen - September 23, 2021
Keith Morris had to call 911 for his adolescent son, who was having a mental health emergency. A team of medical personnel arrived quickly on scene, conducted an assessment and decided to transport the boy to a hospital. Morris’ call to emergency services was just a couple of months into the pandemic — June 2020 […]