On Tuesday, state health officials announced two new positive tests for COVID-19: a Santa Fe County man in his 40s and the first case for Taos with a man in his 50s.
That brings the state's total number to 23, with the breakdown as follows:
- Bernalillo County: 14
- Sandoval County: 2
- Santa Fe County: 4
- Socorro County: 2
- Taos County: 1
The state Health Department reports having performed a total of 1,272 tests; these no longer need to be verified by the Centers for Disease Control. According to the state's COVID-19 website, COVID-19 testing is now available at TriCore, LabCorp, Quest Diagnostics, and the NMDOH Scientific Laboratory Division. Yesterday, the federal Food and Drug Administration authorized states to "set up a system in which they take responsibility for authorizing such tests and the laboratories will not engage with the FDA."
SFR has inquiries to the state regarding this announcement and will update this story as more information becomes available.
Federal officials also announced Tuesday morning expanded telemedicine benefits for Medicare recipients.
In Santa Fe, Presbyterian Santa Fe Medical Center has a virtual interface for those with COVID-19 symptoms.
The state recommends New Mexicans who report symptoms of COVID-19 infection, such as fever, cough, or shortness of breath, should call their health care provider or the NMDOH COVID-19 hotline immediately (1-855-600-3453).
New Mexicans who have non-health-related questions or concerns can also call 833-551-0518 or visit newmexico.gov, which is being updated and finalized as a one-stop source for information.
In other COVID-19 related news, the state announced it has been working with people who have either lost their jobs or had their hours are reduced with applications for unemployment insurance benefits. The standard work search requirement for affected workers has been waived for up to four weeks as a response to the situation.
Numerous restaurants and other businesses have been severely impacted by the state's recent order that restaurants and bars must remain at 50% capacity. Many are offering expanded take-out and curbside service. Here's an ongoing list from our friends at Santafe.com.
Meanwhile, following a international trend, Smith's Food & Drug Stores announced that starting tomorrow, stores will be open only for seniors from 7 to 8 am on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. This will continue until further notice.
"Smith's wants to provide these at-risk customers with the ability to purchase the items they need to avoid busier and more crowded shopping times," Aubriana Martindale, Smith's corporate affairs manager, said in a statement. "We request that customers respect these hours for the health of our community during this time of uncertainty. We appreciate all of our customers for their kind consideration, whose concern contributed to our decision to provide allocated hours for seniors."
In addition, Smith's is waiving pick-up fees for online orders received curbside for customers whose verified age is 60 years and older through April 18, 2020.
Each store will have staff on hand to help those that need special accommodations. For all other customers, temporary store hours will continue to be 8:00 am to 10:00 pm until further notice. In addition, Smith's is evaluating extending pharmacy hours to open earlier for seniors.
An earlier order from the state Health Department forbids gatherings of 100 people or more. The state is asking people to observe social isolation to mitigate the spread of the virus.
Violet Crown announced Tuesday it would be shutting its theater in Santa Fe, as well as Austin and Charlottesville, in response to recent federal recommendations to avoid gatherings of 10 people or more. A statement on Violet Crown's website said: "We are facing an unprecedented situation today, but we look forward to welcoming you back to Violet Crown as soon as safely possible. We will get through this. And we will all be stronger for it. We remain forever grateful for your patronage."
For employees facing lost work, there are two ways to file an initial claim:
- Online by going to the New Mexico Workforce Connection Online System at www.jobs.state.nm.us. Individuals can then access the UI Tax & Claims System. The online system is available to take initial claims and weekly certifications 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
- By phone at 1-877-664-6984. The UI Operations Center is open from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Read more COVID-19 reports from SFR here.
