What changed
New Mexico’s Environmental Improvement Board adopted Title 20, Chapter 13, Part 2 of the New Mexico Administrative Code (20.13.2 NMAC) to implement the state’s PFAS Protection Act. For covered products containing intentionally added PFAS, the rule requires labeling after January 1, 2027, unless a specific exemption or an approved alternative labeling arrangement applies. The required mark is an outline of an Erlenmeyer flask containing the word “PFAS.”
The rule also establishes product prohibitions and manufacturer reporting requirements on separate timelines. The 2027 prohibitions cover cookware, food packaging, dental floss, juvenile products, and firefighting foam; additional categories are covered from 2028, and the broader product prohibition applies from 2032 unless an exemption or Currently Unavoidable Use determination applies.
What the rule says about medical devices
Sections 20.13.2.10 and 20.13.2.13 expressly exempt medical devices, drugs, and their packaging when they are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The exemption is written into the rule itself and covers the relevant product prohibition, reporting, testing, and labeling provisions.
This is a scope-limited exemption. It applies to FDA-regulated medical devices and drugs and their packaging; it should not be read as a blanket exemption for every product marketed by a medical-device company, every industrial component, or every product described as “medical.” The rule does not require an exempt FDA-regulated device manufacturer to seek a separate New Mexico PFAS label waiver for that exempt product.
What manufacturers should verify
Product and packaging status
Document whether the product is an FDA-regulated medical device or drug and whether the packaging is packaging of that regulated product. Keep the classification or listing evidence that supports relying on the rule’s exemption.
Non-medical and mixed portfolios
Separate FDA-regulated products from consumer, wellness, industrial, and other non-medical products sold or distributed in New Mexico. Those products may remain subject to the labeling, reporting, testing, or phase-out provisions if they contain intentionally added PFAS.
Fluoropolymer materials
Do not treat the presence of PTFE, PVDF, FEP, or another fluoropolymer as a substitute for the product-scope analysis. The rule contains separate fluoropolymer provisions, while the medical-device exemption turns on FDA regulation of the device, drug, or associated packaging.
Sources
The direct rule text is the primary source for the exemption and the effective dates. NMED’s manufacturer guidance provides the agency’s plain-language explanation and implementation materials.
Sources
- Primary official sourceTitle 20, Chapter 13, Part 2 NMAC — Products Containing Intentionally Added PFAS (opens in a new tab)New Mexico Environment Department
- Supporting sourceManufacturers — PFAS Protection Act and 20.13.2 NMAC (opens in a new tab)New Mexico Environment Department