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Morning Word
COVID-19 by the numbers
New Mexico health officials yesterday reported 1,281 new COVID-19 cases. However, 331 of those cases, DOH says, were “historical,” meaning they came from specimens collected more than 14 days ago and “should not be considered as reflecting the current levels of community transmission.” The delayed cases, from Lea County, were “the result of one late-reporting facility,” and date back over the course of at least six months. Overall, Lea County had 612 new cases (281 of which are considered recent) followed by Bernalillo County with 136 and Chaves County with 94. Santa Fe County had 33 new cases. Subtracting the older Lea County cases, yesterday’s total case count represents a 33% increase from the day prior. The total number of cases now stands at 217,773; DOH has designated 198,143 of those cases as recovered.
The state also announced four additional deaths, three recent and one from more than 30 days ago. There have now been 4,441 fatalities. As of yesterday, 293 people were hospitalized with COVID-19, 35 more than the day prior. Earlier this week, hospital leaders warned of rising patient loads in already-full facilities.
Currently, among adult New Mexicans 18 years and older, 74.5% of New Mexicans have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 65.7% are fully vaccinated. Among those between the ages of 12 and 17, 53.8% have had at least one dose and 41.3% are fully vaccinated. In Santa Fe County, 18 years and older, 86.1% are partially vaccinated and 76.2% are fully inoculated. Throughout August, New Mexicans who receive a COVID-19 vaccine are eligible for a $100 incentive.
You can read all of SFR’s COVID-19 coverage here.
DOH prepares for vaccine boosters
With the Delta variant spurring rising COVID-19 cases across the US and in New Mexico, the Food and Drug Administration yesterday approved booster shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines for certain immunocompromised individuals, specifically, solid organ transplant recipients or those with conditions that are considered similarly immunocompromised. “As we’ve previously stated, other individuals who are fully vaccinated are adequately protected and do not need an additional dose of COVID-19 vaccine at this time,” Acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock said in a statement. “The FDA is actively engaged in a science-based, rigorous process with our federal partners to consider whether an additional dose may be needed in the future.” The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will be reviewing the scientific data on boosters today and making a recommendation to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shortly thereafter. In preparation, the New Mexico health department yesterday issued a call for all New Mexico healthcare providers caring for immunosuppressed patients to register as approved COVID-19 vaccine providers. “The more providers registered to distribute booster vaccinations, the faster we can get those shots into the arms of New Mexicans who need them the most,” Acting Health Secretary Dr. David Scrase said in a statement. “It will be particularly important for those with weakened immunized systems to get a booster shot to protect their health, and we want everyone treating them to be ready to administer the booster shots in their offices.”
Census shows NM growing more urban
New Mexico, like the rest of the US, has been growing more urban, according to new data released yesterday by the US Census Bureau. Among the state’s largest cities, Santa Fe grew the fastest over the last decade. The state remains the most Hispanic state, with close to 48% of those surveyed in the 2020 Census identifying as such, followed by California and Texas (you can use this interactive map to view some of the data). The adult population in the US increased more quickly than the under-18 demographic; New Mexico had a 7.7% decrease—approximately 40,000 people—in those under the age of 18 and a 6.4% increase—about 98,000 people—over the age of 18. Much of the data released yesterday will be used by states as they redraw political maps, aka redistricting. The state’s Citizen Redistricting Committee is holding meetings Aug. 14 and 15, both of which can be attended online; the committee last month launched an online portal, through which the public can submit testimony, as well as draw and submit their own redistricting maps.
State to launch new “stratospheric” air quality study
New Mexico plans to spend five years studying its air quality from 65,000 feet above the state. The news follows a memorandum of understanding between the state’s environment and economic development departments and the US Environmental Protection Agency. Once that agreement is in place, the EPA will enter into a private/public agreement with Sceye, a material science company based in Moriarty, which builds “stratospheric infrastructure,” also known as High Altitude Platform Stations, which provide both environmental monitoring and internet access. “Under this partnership, we will study pollution sources and their impacts on climate and air quality from 65,000 feet above New Mexico,” NMED Secretary James Kenney said in a statement. “As a result, we will increase our scientific understanding of climate change and air pollution to inform our ambitious policymaking.” According to a news release, the HAPS infrastructure will allow the environment department to: increase monitoring of air quality, especially in rural areas; provide quantitative information on emissions from air pollutant sources to help ensure compliance; provide information to help New Mexico determine how much air pollution stems from Mexico and neighboring states like Texas; and inform public health and environmental coordination efforts between the US and Mexico. “We see our HAPS as instant infrastructure,” Sceye founder and CEO Mikkel Vestergaard Frandsen said in a statement. “We can use our position in the stratosphere to not only expand broadband access to all, but also to transform how we monitor and care for our environment. Tracking emissions with precision and real time data is the key to realizing New Mexico’s ambitions for improving air quality. The state can set a national standard.” The study is expected to start next year.
Listen up
On The Dungball Express podcast, entertainment industry veterans and New Mexico residents Donald Davenport and Harry Musselwhite, of Santa Fe and Los Lunas respectively, talk all things creative, arts and showbiz. On their most recent episode, the two hosts spoke with producer/director and Albuquerque resident Joe Lonesome about his early days as a skateboarder and his OffSet Web Series.
Vampyric sounds
The New Yorker delves into the Santa Fe Opera’s première of The Lord of Cries, written by John Corigliano with a libretto by his husband, fellow composer Mark Adamo. The “Dracula-infused opera,” the New Yorker writes, mostly has the “field” of vampire-influenced operas to itself, following several in an early burst of operatic activity in the 1800s, spurred by “the vampire hysteria that swept over Europe in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.” Adamo’s concept of melding Bram Stoker’s epistolary novel with Euripides’ The Bacchae “is a good match for Corigliano’s aesthetic,” critic Alex Ross notes, “which thrives on the collision of disparate spheres.” While Ross finds the opera uneven in places, he also notes “it contains some of Corigliano’s grandest, wildest, most exuberantly inventive music” and, of course, the Santa Fe Opera “is always a prime spot to see gifted younger singers, and the company has fielded a superb cast” for The Lord of Cries. It’s not too late to see The Lord of Cries, which runs through Aug. 17 (with the opera’s other three operas running through Aug. 27). You can catch up on SFR’s coverage here.
God is a Bullet starts filming
“When vice-division chief detective Bob Hightower finds his ex-wife murdered and daughter kidnapped by a satanic cult, Bob becomes frustrated by official investigators, who have yet to solve the case. Bob quits the police force, gets a bad attitude and tattoos to match, and goes undercover to infiltrate the cult in search of his daughter, with the help of the cult’s female victim escapee, Case Hardin.” That’s the plot, verbatim, of God is a Bullet, filming this month at Santa Fe’s Bonanza Creek Ranch. Starring, among others, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, January Jones and Jamie Foxx, the production will employ approximately 85 New Mexico crew members, five New Mexico principal cast members and five New Mexico background and extras, according to a state Film Office news release. “I am excited to get God Is A Bullet into production with my friend and producer/financer, Michael Mendelsohn,” director Nick Cassavetes said in a statement. “It’s a magnificent, ultra-dark work that is somehow both intensely frightening and literate, inspired by true events, with the most amazing cast of actors.” Mendelsohn described himself as “extremely happy to be back in New Mexico,” and said some of the film’s “most important plot points” will be shot here in Santa Fe. “We are also looking at studio space property in New Mexico to expand our production facilities and realize the benefits from the film savvy crew and the prudently structured New Mexico film incentives,” he said. Late last month, the production shut down temporarily from filming in Mexico after five people—including Cassavetes—tested positive for COVID-19.
Keep it coming
The National Weather Service forecasts a 70% chance of precipitation today, with showers and thunderstorms likely after noon (which, based on personal observation, means several traffic lights at busy intersections will stop working this afternoon). Otherwise, today will be mostly cloudy with a high near a downright chilly 69 degrees. Saturday looks about the same temperature wise, although chances of rain will drop to about 40%. Sunday should be a scant warmer (76 degrees), with a 30% chance for rain. So grab those sweaters and umbrellas and have a great weekend.
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