Starting Friday, New Mexico breweries can open for outdoor service on patios at 50% capacity, and their indoor spaces can do the same the following Monday.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced breweries as the latest business that can open at limited capacity while at the same time she and other state officials discussed the uptick of cases here and in surrounding states.
Today, New Mexico has 121 new positive tests for COVID-19, bringing the statewide total to 9,367. As of today, 189 people are hospitalized, with 60 on ventilators. The health department has designated 3,899 COVID-19 cases as recovered.
The state also reported 10 new deaths, bringing the total number of fatalities to 420. A complete breakdown of new cases, fatalities and statewide data is available at the end of this story.
New Mexico does have fewer new cases today than yesterday, when there were 147. "Having lower cases today feels good," Lujan Grisham said, "but it is not an indication that we are free of COVID and, until we have zero cases for a long period of time and a vaccine, we are not going to be free of COVID or COVID risks."
Moreover, health officials look less at day-to-day figures and more at numbers over time, such as seven-day averages. There, New Mexico has had an upward trend, and went from "green" to "red" on the COVID Exit Strategy website that tracks states' progress in curtailing the virus and being ready to reopen. New Mexico had been green (trending favorably) for several weeks, as extolled by Human Services Secretary David Scrase, who noted the site "used to be my favorite website."
New Mexico continues to be in solid shape with diagnostic testing and hospital capacity, but has had an increase in cases, primarily in the Northwest region of the state in McKinley and San Juan counties, as well as at the Otero County Prison Facility.
Those cases have driven the new "spike" of cases indicated by the top dotted blue below. The Southwest region—the lower turquoise (ish) line includes Doña Ana County, which also has had more cases.
"We have to pace the whole process of reopening with what we're seeing happen in our community and our state," Scrase said. "It means a bit of a foot on the break, watch carefully for the next couple of weeks and a constant reminder to all of us about wearing our mask washing our hands, particularly don't go out if you're sick. All of those things are critically important."
Nonetheless, the state remains in good stead for its current "gating criteria," which is used to evaluate re-openings. That criteria includes hospital capacity, contact tracing efforts, personal protection equipment for healthcare workers and the effective rate of spread. New Mexico's current spread rate target is 1.15; the state is at 1.10.
Scrase said, however, the mapping team is reconsidering how it calculates the effective rate of spread and "will be making some changes" that he will announce at a later date when he has more information. New Mexico also is receiving a "C" grade from the website tracking the data used by that site, and others, for the quality of its data. When asked by SFR about the middling grade, Scrase said he would review the site. While New Mexico does appear to provide much of the material the site uses to evaluate state's data, it is not always consolidated or easily extrapolated in its current form.
And, while the state's data dashboard has recently begun including historical data of cases, deaths and testing by county, it still does not provide recovered cases by county, information this paper and others have repeatedly requested.
Notably, Scrase did share new data that reflects the higher impact COVID-19 has in low-income areas identified as such through Census tracts in New Mexico.
"What this slide says is that if you live in a census tract…where 40% or more of individuals are at or below the federal poverty line, your chances of contracting a COVID infection are 15 times higher than folks who live in census tracts that are less than 5%" of low-income residents, he said.
"I take for granted the resources I have like running water and electricity and access to cleaning materials," Scrase added. "Not everyone in New Mexico has this. New Mexico has one of the highest poverty rates in the country…one of the things to remember as we reach out to the public and intervene: This is really a matter of some of our most disadvantaged citizens vulnerable to a really serious illness."
Lujan Grisham also discussed surrounding states that have had an increase in cases, most notably Arizona, Texas and California. Arizona officials recently warned about reaching capacity at its hospitals.
"This evidence is dramatic," Lujan Grisham said, "and it's something that gives all decision makers and governors pause about where we are in reopening our economies."
New Mexico continues to be in solid shape with diagnostic testing—mostly meeting its 5,000 daily target.
Health Secretary Kathy Kunkel says the state has taken an "aggressive" approach at Otero County prison, where there are 222 cases, with eight people in the hospital, one of whom is intubated. There have been two deaths there thus far. All staff have been tested and 25% are being re-tested weekly, she said. Quarantine and isolation units are being tested every three to four days and unaffected units at the prison are being tested weekly. The state also has implemented rapid response testing 119 times since May 11, wherein health department employees respond to a business where there has been a case and work with them directly to test employees and provide other support.
Overall, Lujan Grisham said, she remains optimistic and, as such, will be modifying the state’s current emergency health order to allow breweries to open their patios at 50% capacity Friday, followed by indoor business, also at half capacity on Monday.
In response to a question by SFR regarding breweries being allowed to open while bars remain shuttered, she noted that breweries are similar to restaurants, which are operating under the same restrictions, in that people might have a beer and some food. At bars, on the other hand, customers may perhaps stay longer and perhaps engage in an array of mostly unspecified "human behaviors." Like listening to music. And other things. "
I don't want the viewers who are hearing this, watching this, to assume these are opinions about behavior," Lujan Grisham said. "That's why we go to a bar."
At any rate, bars are included in the next phase of recovery.
And the message remains the same overall, which is that New Mexicans should wear masks, wash their hands and do everything they can to mitigate the possibility of contracting COVID-19.
June 11, 2020 Update
New cases
- 31 new cases in Bernalillo County
- 2 new cases in Chaves County
- 2 new cases in Cibola County
- 18 new cases in Doña Ana County
- 3 new cases in Eddy County
- 1 new case in Grant County
- 1 new case in Lea County
- 8 new cases in Luna County
- 14 new cases in McKinley County
- 1 new case in Rio Arriba County
- 5 new cases in Roosevelt County
- 3 new cases in Sandoval County
- 8 new cases in San Juan County
- 2 new cases in Santa Fe County
- 2 new cases in Valencia County
- 2 new cases among individuals held by federal agencies at the Otero County Prison Facility
- 17 new cases among New Mexico Corrections Department inmates at the Otero County Prison Facility
- 1 new case among New Mexico Corrections Department inmates at the Northwest New Mexico Correctional Center in Cibola County
New fatalities
- A male in his 60s from Doña Ana County who was hospitalized
- A male in his 80s from Doña Ana County who had underlying conditions and was a resident of the Jim Wood Home in Hatch
- A male in his 80s from McKinley County who had underlying conditions and was a patient at the Canyon Transitional Rehabilitation Center in Albuquerque
- A second male in his 80s from McKinley County
- A female in her 80s from San Juan County who was a resident of the Life Care Center of Farmington in Farmington
- A female in her 90s from San Juan County who had underlying conditions and was a resident of Beehive Homes in Farmington
- A second female in her 90s from San Juan County who had underlying conditions and was a resident of Beehive Homes in Farmington
- A male in his 50s from San Juan County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions
- A male in his 70s from San Juan County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions
- A male in his 90s from San Juan County who had underlying conditions and was a resident of the Cedar Ridge Inn facility in Farmington
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
- Avamere Rehab at Fiesta Park in Albuquerque
- Aztec Health Care in Aztec
- Bear Canyon Nursing and Rehab Center in Albuquerque
- Beehive Homes in Farmington
- Belen Meadows in Belen
- Bonney Family Home in Gallup
- Brookdale Tramway Ridge in Albuquerque
- Camino Healthcare in Albuquerque
- Camino Retirement Apartments in Albuquerque
- Casa De Oro Center in Las Cruces
- Casa Del Sol Center in Las Cruces
- Casa Maria Health Care Center in Roswell
- Cedar Ridge Inn in Farmington
- Central Desert Behavioral Health in Albuquerque
- Clayton Nursing and Rehab in Clayton
- Dungarvin New Mexico, LLC in Gallup
- Genesis Uptown Rehabilitation Center
- Good Samaritan Society in Grants
- Heartland Continuing Care Center in Portales
- The Jim Wood Home in Hatch
- Laguna Rainbow Elderly Care in Casa Blanca
- La Vida Llena in Albuquerque
- Legacy Santa Fe in Santa Fe
- Life Care Center of Farmington in Farmington
- Little Sisters of the Poor in Gallup
- McKinley Care Center in Gallup
- Mission Arch Center in Roswell
- MorningStar Assisted Living & Memory Care of Santa Fe in Santa Fe
- Pacifica Senior Living Center Santa Fe in Santa Fe
- Prime Care Assisted Living in Albuquerque
- Red Rocks Care Center in Gallup
- Retirement Ranches, Inc. in Clovis
- Robin House Assisted Living Center in Albuquerque
- San Juan Center in Farmington
- South Valley Care Center in Albuquerque
- Spanish Trails Rehabilitation Suites in Albuquerque
- Sundance Care Home in Gallup
- Tohatchi Area Opportunity Services (TAOS) in Tohatchi
- The Village at Alameda in Albuquerque
- The Village at Northrise in Las Cruces
- Wellbrook Transitional Rehabilitation Center in Farmington
Statewide cases
Per a state news release the following corrections have been made to statewide totals: Previously reported numbers included three cases that have been identified as duplicates: two in Bernalillo County and one in Torrance County. Two cases have been determined to be out-of-state residents: one in Bernalillo County and one in Doña Ana County. One case in Santa Fe County was not lab confirmed. Previously reported numbers did not include two cases that were thought to be out-of-state residents that have since been identified as New Mexico state residents: One case has been added to Doña Ana County and one case has been added to McKinley County.
County totals are subject to change upon further investigation and determination of residency of individuals positive for COVID-19.
- Bernalillo County: 1,651
- Catron County: 2
- Chaves County: 52
- Cibola County: 172
- Colfax County: 6
- Curry County: 68
- Doña Ana County: 632
- Eddy County: 45
- Grant County: 16
- Guadalupe County: 20
- Harding County: 1
- Hidalgo County: 1
- Lea County: 35
- Lincoln County: 5
- Los Alamos County: 6
- Luna County: 20
- McKinley County: 2,822
- Otero County: 28
- Quay County: 4
- Rio Arriba County: 60
- Roosevelt County: 51
- Sandoval County: 607
- San Juan County: 2,043
- San Miguel County: 16
- Santa Fe County: 161
- Sierra County: 3
- Socorro County: 55
- Taos County: 31
- Torrance County: 34
- Union County: 5
- Valencia County: 86
Cases among people being held by federal agencies
- Cibola County Correctional Center: 2
- Otero County Prison Facility: 275
- Otero County Processing Center: 92
- Torrance County Detention Facility: 18
Cases among people being held by the Mexico Department of Corrections
- Central New Mexico Correctional Facility in Valencia County: 1
- Northwest New Mexico Correctional Center in Cibola County: 1
- Otero County Prison Facility: 239
- 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.
