New Mexico · Application guide
Applying for the New Mexico DD Waiver, Mi Via, or Medically Fragile Waiver is a mail-and-phone process through the Central Registry — no portal, no e-signatures, no online status page. HCA describes the sequence below; WaiverPath turns it into tracked deadlines, call logs, and a document inventory so the paper never gets ahead of the family.
Step 1
Call the Pre-Service Intake Bureau (PSIB) at 505-630-9555 or 575-997-7980, mail or fax the registration form (fax 505-533-6077), or register in person at a DDSD regional office. The date DDSD receives the registration is the official registration date — write it down along with who you spoke to.
Step 2
DDSD mails the HCBS Waivers & ICF/IID Application Form (English or Spanish) plus Release of Information forms. There is no download and no portal — if the packet does not arrive within a few weeks, call PSIB and confirm your mailing address.
Step 3
Answer every question on the application form and sign every Release of Information form so DDSD can request records. Photocopy or scan the entire signed packet before it goes anywhere — in a paper-only process, your copies are the record.
Step 4
Send it by certified mail or with tracking. The date PSIB receives the completed packet becomes your application date and sets your position for service offers, so mail it the same week it is finished. Packet questions: 505-350-0034.
Step 5
Families have 60 days from receiving the packet to return supporting documentation — medical records, evaluations, and anything else requested. Start records requests the day the packet arrives and aim to have everything mailed by day 45.
Step 6
At allocation, a Letter of Interest and Primary Freedom of Choice form arrive BY MAIL with 30 days to respond. This is where the family chooses the DD Waiver, Mi Via, or ICF/IID and a case-management agency — or asks to hold. Decide the answers before the letter comes so the 30 days are for mailing, not deliberating.
Step 7
The Medicaid financial application is mailed to the Institutional Care Waiver Unit, PO Box 830, Bernalillo, NM 87004. Medical eligibility runs separately through physician forms sent to the Third Party Assessor — book the doctor visit early so the physician forms never become the bottleneck.
Every critical document in this process — the packet, the Letter of Interest, the Freedom of Choice form, the financial application — arrives by postal mail. A move, a bad mailbox, or an unopened envelope can silently burn a 30- or 60-day window. Keep the Central Registry address current and open DDSD mail the day it arrives.
With no waitlist to hide behind, the packet's receipt date at PSIB IS your application date. Every week the packet sits unfinished is a week of services lost on the back end.
Registration dates and application dates are set by when DDSD receives paper. Certified mail or tracking turns "we mailed it" into a provable date if anything is ever disputed.
Records requests to clinics and schools can take weeks on their own. Start them immediately and track what is still owed against the 60-day deadline.
The Letter of Interest looks like one more envelope, but it carries the 30-day Freedom of Choice deadline that decides which program and case-management agency the family gets. Log its arrival date the day it lands.
Last reviewed by WaiverPath: July 2, 2026.
WaiverPath is not a government agency, law firm, Medicaid provider, or benefits advisor. We help you organize information, documents, and follow-up tasks. Always verify requirements with the official agency or a qualified professional.
