With COVID-19 cases increasing across New Mexico, growing among young people and the rate of transmission also rising, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham today announced 14-day quarantines for everyone coming from out of state and $100 fines for anyone not wearing a mask.
"I'm sure that wasn't the news New Mexicans were hoping for," Lujan Grisham said.
Additionally, Lujan Grisham extended the current emergency health order and announced at least a two-week pause on any further re-openings.
Today, the state reported 130 additional COVID-19 cases, bringing the statewide total thus far to 12,276. The governor also reported three additional deaths, which brings the total number of fatalities to 500.
As of today, 127 people are hospitalized, 38 on ventilators. The health department has designated 5,514 COVID-19 cases as recovered.* Details on new cases, fatalities and statewide totals are available at the end of this story.
While hospitalizations and deaths have been decreasing, COVID-19 cases continue to rise in all regions across the state, with the last five or six days being "particularly steep," said Human Services Secretary David Scrase, who described the picture of COVID-19 in New Mexico as "bad news."
Just as cases are rapidly rising across the country, they are also doing so here. "Ours came a little bit later than our neighbors, Texas and Arizona…but now those numbers are coming to New Mexico," he said.
Officials also noted the largest group of new cases this week was among people in the 20-to-29-year-old age group—27% of new cases and, over the past seven days, the second-highest group of new cases were among people ages 30-to-39 (19.9% of new cases).
The effective rate of transmission also continues to climb well above 1.05, the standard health officials set as part of the gating criteria for re-opening the economy.
"We were doing so good," Scrase said, noting that after previous historic lows, the spread rate has increased in all of the state's public health regions.
The state also continues to lag in meeting gating criteria for contact tracing, particularly challenging given the recent spike in cases. "We're struggling to keep up with that, but still doing reasonably well," Scrase said, and urged people to cooperate with health officials if contacted about exposure.
Health officials also have been focusing on rapid-response testing for workplaces when cases are reported. That has been steadily rising, Health Secretary Kathy Kunkel said, with 44 rapid-response cases just overnight. "A typical day would be six or seven, a heavy day would be 15," she noted.
As for cases caused either by New Mexicans who traveled out of state, or visitors who brought the disease with them, those numbers also have risen.
At the beginning of March, 56.3% of COVID-19 cases were New Mexicans who had traveled outside of New Mexico in the 14 days before symptom onset by reported week. That fell to 1.1% by the week of April 19, but was up to 8.9% the week of June 21.
As for visitors, the proportion of COVID-19 cases reported to the health department who were out-of-state residents was at its lowest at the end of March (less than 3%), at its highest the week of May 24 when it hit 13.4% and most recently was at 9.1% the week of June 21.
While people arriving in New Mexico via air travel have already been required to quarantine for 14 days, the new health order requires any visitor, regardless of how they arrive, to do so.
"If you're flying in, you're quarantined," Lujan Grisham said. "Want to drive here for vacationing? You're quarantined in your room." The governor said her administration would be increasing its outreach with airports and the lodging industry to help enforce the mandatory quarantines.
The governor also announced that people not complying with the mandatory mask requirement will now be fined $100. Based on anecdotal evidence and the rising cases, it is clear, she said, that positive reinforcement has not been sufficient motivation.
"I think it's weighed heavily on too many New Mexicans who don't believe it makes a difference," Lujan Grisham said. "It does make a difference."
With the current negative outlook, any additional re-openings won't be considered for at least two weeks, and without progress, some roll-backs may occur, she said, noting those would include indoor dining, gyms and occupancy levels at retailers and houses of worship.
"I don't want people in New Mexico to be angry," she said. "I know that's going to be hard. When you have anyone in government that tells you what you have to do, our natural reaction, a strong independent people, is to reject that. This is a public health response to a public health emergency. We have to do it."
And as for the upcoming July 4 holiday weekend: No barbecues, no family gatherings, no community fireworks, the governor said, noting that she planned to watch "a patriotic movie" and have a virtual celebration.
"I am sure that is going to be the hardest news to hear today," Lujan Grisham said. "The behavior this weekend alone can be sufficient to create incredible transmission and risk for everyone else in the state."
While the overall picture today was somewhat grim, officials stressed New Mexico can still shift the trajectory of COVID-19 in a positive direction; the current goal being to be able to send children back to school next month.
"I wish we had better news, but it's not the worst news," Lujan Grisham said. "These are concerning trends; we are going in the wrong direction…I don't think it's too late for us to turn, stem the tide, to get back to a place where we flatten the curve."
New cases
- 38 new cases in Bernalillo County
- 1 new case in Chaves County
- 2 new cases in Curry County
- 9 new cases in Doña Ana County
- 2 new cases in Eddy County
- 1 new case in Grant County
- 2 new cases in Lea County
- 1 new case in Luna County
- 17 new cases in McKinley County
- 1 new case in Otero County
- 3 new cases in Rio Arriba County
- 3 new cases in Sandoval County
- 38 new cases in San Juan County
- 3 new cases in Santa Fe County
- 1 new case in Sierra County
- 1 new case in Taos County
- 1 new case in Union County
- 3 new cases in Valencia County
- 1 new case among New Mexico Corrections Department inmates at the Central New Mexico Correctional Facility
- 1 new case among New Mexico Corrections Department inmates at the Otero County Prison Facility
- 1 new case among individuals held by federal agencies at the Otero County Processing Center
New fatalities
- A male in his 60s from McKinley County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
- A female in her 80s from McKinley County who had underlying conditions.
- A male in his 70s from Bernalillo County who was a patient at the Princeton Place facility in Albuquerque.
Congregate facilities
The Department of Health has identified at least one positive COVID-19 case in residents and/or staff in the past 28 days at the following facilities:
- Advanced Health Care of Albuquerque in Albuquerque
- Albuquerque Heights Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Albuquerque
- Artesia Healthcare and Rehabilitation in Artesia
- BeeHive Homes of Farmington in Farmington
- BeeHive Homes of Gallup in Gallup
- Blue Horizon Assisted Living in Las Cruces
- Bonney Family Home in Gallup
- Brookdale Tramway Ridge in Albuquerque
- Brookdale Santa Fe in Santa Fe
- Camino Healthcare in Albuquerque
- Camino Retirement Apartments in Albuquerque
- Casa Real in Santa Fe
- Cedar Ridge Inn in Farmington
- Clayton Nursing and Rehab in Clayton
- Dungarvin New Mexico, LLC in Gallup
- Good Samaritan Society in Grants
- Good Samaritan Society in Las Cruces
- Heartland Continuing Care Center in Portales
- The Jim Wood Home in Hatch
- Laguna Rainbow Elderly Care in Casa Blanca
- Life Care Center of Farmington in Farmington
- Little Sisters of the Poor in Gallup
- Mimbres Memorial Nursing Home in Deming
- Mission Arch Center in Roswell
- Namaste House Assisted Living in Farmington
- Princeton Place in Albuquerque
- Red Rocks Care Center in Gallup
- Robin House Assisted Living Center in Albuquerque
- Sandia Ridge Center in Albuquerque
- South Valley Care Center in Albuquerque
- Sundance Care Home in Gallup
- Tohatchi Area Opportunity Services (TAOS) in Tohatchi
- Uptown Rehabilitation Center in Albuquerque
- The Village at Alameda in Albuquerque
- The Village at Northrise in Las Cruces
Statewide cases
According to a state news release, previously reported numbers included one case in Doña Ana County that has been identified as an out-of-state resident, which has been corrected. County totals are subject to change upon further investigation and determination of residency of individuals positive for COVID-19.
- Bernalillo County: 2,178
- Catron County: 2
- Chaves County: 95
- Cibola County: 212
- Colfax County: 9
- Curry County: 165
- Doña Ana County: 957
- Eddy County: 82
- Grant County: 19
- Guadalupe County: 20
- Harding County: 1
- Hidalgo County: 49
- Lea County: 134
- Lincoln County: 11
- Los Alamos County: 8
- Luna County: 80
- McKinley County: 3,395
- Otero County: 43
- Quay County: 6
- Rio Arriba County: 101
- Roosevelt County: 59
- Sandoval County: 731
- San Juan County: 2,460
- San Miguel County: 21
- Santa Fe County: 240
- Sierra County: 12
- Socorro County: 60
- Taos County: 43
- Torrance County: 43
- Union County: 8
- Valencia County: 124
Cases among people being held by federal agencies
- Cibola County Correctional Center: 2
- Otero County Prison Facility: 275
- Otero County Processing Center: 147
- Torrance County Detention Facility: 32
Cases among people being held by the Mexico Department of Corrections
- Central New Mexico Correctional Facility in Valencia County: 6
- Northwest New Mexico Correctional Center in Cibola County: 1
- Otero County Prison Facility: 444
- Penitentiary of New Mexico in Santa Fe County: 1
*Per the health department, hospitalization figures include people who were tested elsewhere but are hospitalized in New Mexico, but don't include people who were tested here but are hospitalized out of state.
