After earning her degree in 1977, Ortíz moved to Los Angeles and started auditioning for roles in various productions. She won the part of Alicia Nieves on Ryan's Hope, a daytime soap opera, moving to New York City for taping. After fifteen months on the show, Ortíz moved back to Los Angeles part-time and kept auditioning while attending law school at Southwestern University at night back in Texas.[citation needed] Eventually, her acting opportunities suffered and she decided to pursue acting full-time.

Following several guest roles in episodic television, including two separate roles in Glen A. Larson's series Battlestar Galactica and a role on his series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Ortíz auditioned for the role of spoiled, selfish vineyard heiress Melissa Agretti on Falcon Crest as a replacement for actress Delores Cantú who had played Melissa for one episode in early 1982. Melissa went on to become the series' "love to hate" character and a firm fan favourite, as a worthy rival for the show's arch-villainess Angela Channing, played by Jane Wyman.

In 1989, Ortíz appeared with Raúl Juliá in the movie Romero, her only non-television film role apart from Halloween II in 1981. She continued to play guest roles on episodic television, including two episodes in the action series Renegade which reunited her with her former Falcon Crest screen husband Lorenzo Lamas. This was her last known acting role. She has since moved back to El Paso to raise her family[citation needed]

Ortíz married Gary Benz on April 24, 1994; they have two children.