STATE News:

ALBUQUERQUE — In the first phase of a multi-phase project to expand accessibility to agency forms, the Workers’ Compensation Administration has launched several of its mandatory legal forms in Spanish.

The forms are available for download at the agency’s website at https://workerscomp.nm.gov/NMWCA-Forms. The forms are also are available upon request at the agency’s main office as well as all six of its field offices.

The following mandatory forms are now available in Spanish:

• Complaint form;
• Complaint for Two Employers;
• Complaint for the Uninsured Employers’ Fund (UEF);
• Workers’ Authorization for Health Records (HIPAA);
• Complaint Packet (complaint, summons and HIPAA forms); and
• Uninsured Employers’ Fund Packet (complaint, HIPAA).

The forms are available in PDF or Word versions, and agency assistance is a priority. There are several Spanish forms that can be filled out by the user in Spanish, and the bulk of the information automatically populates into an attached English version of the form. Agency ombudsmen can provide assistance as needed. Forms can then be filed with the agency’s Clerk of the Court.

“It has been a major goal for me since becoming director that the agency’s forms, publications, and website be translated to Spanish for the state’s Spanish-only speakers,” Director Robert E. Doucette, Jr. said. “This is the first phase of a multi-phase project that will eventually not only have all legal forms and publications translated to Spanish but will also include translating the agency website into multiple languages.”

A number of the agency’s publications have been available in Spanish for years. Spanish publications can be downloaded from the website at https://workerscomp.nm.gov/Publications. The Publications page of the website now includes a discrete section for Spanish publications, which provides instructions in Spanish on how to download documents.