New Mexico COVID-19 Cases: 6,317

NM officials say the state is on track for continued re-openings in June

While New Mexico continues to have new COVID-19 cases, as well as fatalities, the state overall is on track to meet criteria for continuing to reopen the economy with dine-in restaurants, salons and gyms—operating at reduced capacity to maintain social distancing—starting up again on June 1.

That was the mostly positive word from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and other health officials during a news briefing this afternoon that provided an overview of the state's progress with the virus.

Today, health officials announced 134 additional positive tests for COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases thus far to 6,317, as well as seven additional deaths. As of today, 206 people are hospitalized* and 58 are on ventilators. The health department has designated 1,985 COVID-19 cases as recovered. There have been 283 fatalities thus far. A detailed listing of today's cases, fatalities and a statewide update is available at the end of this story.

Statewide, the rate of transmission—which health officials are tracking closely—has declined in all regions, and Health and Human Services Secretary David Scrase, sharing the most recent modeling data for the state, says it appears the state may have hit its peak on May 1. "Hopefully, we're on a steady downhill course," he said.

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Any uptick from last Saturday's partial reopening of some businesses won't appear until 10 to 14 days afterward, he noted, but the state "is doing well in all the metrics."

One of those metrics, testing, continues to grow in capacity: The state has conducted 147,344 total tests statewide, and is currently conducting approximately 4,400 tests per day with a goal of 5,000 daily.01-slide-6

To that end, health officials continue to encourage New Mexicans to get tested. Health Secretary Kathy Kunkel says lab capacity has increased as well with Pathology Consultants of New Mexico in Roswell starting testing, Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center conducting its own testing in-house and New Mexico State University also on its way to doing so.

"With increased capacity, we're looking forward to developing a more strategic surveillance system that will become part of the public health mission much like our flu network surveillance has in the past," Kunkel said.

The state also has continued to test inmates across the state, she said, and has  tested 100% of staff and 25% of prisoners in all state facilities. County testing also is underway in 22 counties, with guards and prisoners at the same proportional rate.

All of these positive signs indicate New Mexico is "on track," the governor said, to reopen to higher-impact businesses such as dine-in restaurants, gyms and salons come June 1 "and we might come to you even earlier," she said. A special legislative session, she said, is scheduled for June 18.

"We don't believe we aren't going to get to our targets exactly when we should," Lujan Grisham said. "I want that too and we're getting there thanks to you."

Nonetheless, stay-at-home orders remain in place for now, and the governor encouraged New Mexicans to monitor themselves not just for COVID-19 symptoms, but for behavioral health challenges as well.

"We know that isolation, these stay-at-home orders…create real impacts on all of our behavioral health," she said. "We're not seeing our families, we're not seeing our co-workers our children are not seeing their friends and their teachers and folks they count on in their schools. This is a significant issue."

To that end, the governor shared various resources available for people suffering with behavioral health and addiction issues during the pandemic.

"No one should feel like they're in this alone and like they don't have access support to navigate the isolation and potential depression we're all feeling," she said.

New cases

  • 30 new cases in Bernalillo County
  • 1 new case in Chaves County
  • 3 new cases in Cibola County
  • 1 new case in Curry County
  • 4 new cases in Doña Ana County
  • 25 new cases in McKinley County
  • 1 new case in Roosevelt County
  • 22 new cases in Sandoval County
  • 25 new cases in San Juan County
  • 1 new case in Santa Fe County
  • 1 new case in Valencia County
  • 1 new case among individuals held by federal agencies at the Otero County Prison Facility
  • 19 new cases new cases among federal detainees at the ICE Otero County Processing Center

New fatalities

  • A female in her 50s from McKinley County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
  • A female in her 70s from McKinley County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
  • A male in his 70s from McKinley County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
  • A female in her 80s from San Juan County who had underlying conditions and was a resident of Life Care Center of Farmington in Farmington.
  • A second female in her 80s from San Juan County who had underlying conditions and was hospitalized.
  • A female in her 90s from San Juan County who had underlying conditions and was hospitalized.
  • A male in his 80s from San Juan County who had underlying conditions and was a resident of the San Juan Center facility in Farmington.

Congregate living facilities

The Department of Health has identified at least one positive COVID-19 case in residents and/or staff at the following congregate living and acute care facilities:
  • Advanced Health Care of Albuquerque in Albuquerque
  • Albuquerque Heights Healthcare and Rehab in Albuquerque
  • Aztec Health Care in Aztec
  • Beehive Homes in Farmington
  • Bonney Family Home in Gallup
  • Brio Assisted Living in Albuquerque
  • 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
  • Haciendas of Grace Village in Las Cruces
  • Heartland Continuing Care Center in Portales
  • Ladera Center in Albuquerque
  • Las Palomas Center in Albuquerque
  • 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
  • MorningStar Assisted Living & Memory Care of Santa Fe in Santa Fe
  • Namaste House Assisted Living in Farmington
  • The Neighborhood in Rio Rancho
  • Pacifica Senior Living Center Santa Fe in Santa Fe
  • Red Rocks Care Center in Gallup
  • Retirement Ranches, Inc. in Clovis
  • Robin House Assisted Living Center in Albuquerque
  • Sandia Ridge Center in Albuquerque
  • San Juan Center in Farmington
  • Spanish Trails Rehabilitation Suites in Albuquerque
  • Sundance Care Home in Gallup
  • Taos Living Center in Taos
  • Tohatchi Area Opportunity Services (TAOS) in Tohatchi
  • Tungland Corporation in Farmington
  • Uptown Genesis in Albuquerque
  • The Village at Alameda in Albuquerque
  • Wellbrook Transitional Rehabilitation Center in Farmington

Statewide cases

Previously reported numbers included three cases that were determined to be out-of-state residents (2 in Roosevelt County and 1 in McKinley County) and six cases that were identified as duplicates (1 in Bernalillo County, 2 in McKinley County, 1 among individuals held by federal agencies at the Otero County Prison Facility, 1 in San Juan County, and 1 in Doña Ana County) – these have now been corrected. Including the above newly reported cases, New Mexico has now had a total of 6,317 positive tests for COVID-19:
Bernalillo County: 1,254
Catron County: 2
Chaves County: 32
Cibola County: 111
Colfax County: 5
Curry County: 44
Doña Ana County: 322
Eddy County: 17
Grant County: 16
Guadalupe County: 19
Harding County: 1
Hidalgo County: 1
Lea County: 18
Lincoln County: 3
Los Alamos County: 6
Luna County: 8
McKinley County: 2,009
Otero County: 8
Quay County: 5
Rio Arriba County: 33
Roosevelt County: 26
Sandoval County: 520
San Juan County: 1,432
San Miguel County: 10
Santa Fe County: 127
Sierra County: 1
Socorro County: 49
Taos County: 22
Torrance County: 19
Union County: 3
Valencia County: 69

People held by federal agencies

  • Cibola County Correctional Center: 2
  • Otero County Prison Facility: 38
  • Otero County Processing Center: 62
  • Torrance County Detention Facility: 1

State prisoners

  • Central New Mexico Correctional Facility in Valencia County: 1
  • Otero County Prison Facility: 21

*Per the health department, hospitalization figures include people who tested positive elsewhere but are hospitalized in New Mexico, but don’t include people who tested positive here but are hospitalized out of state.

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