Copyright © 2020 Albuquerque Journal
SANTA FE – Health officials on Tuesday reported the deaths of eight more New Mexicans in the state’s coronavirus outbreak, pushing the statewide death toll to 787 since March.
But the number of new cases detected by testing continued to fall, with just 110 new infections reported Tuesday, well below the average for the past seven days.
Those whose deaths were reported Tuesday were men and women in their 50s through 80s, most of whom had an underlying health condition, a risk factor for COVID-19.
The eight deaths are a bit higher than the recent average. New Mexico has averaged 5.3 deaths a day over the past week.
As for new cases, Doña Ana County led the state, with 32 new infections Tuesday, just ahead of Bernalillo County, which had 30.
The state’s seven-day rolling average now stands at 133 cases a day, roughly in line with recent figures.
New Mexico remains in compliance with seven of its eight reopening criteria – with contact tracing for people who might have been exposed to the virus the only problem area.
The number of tests conducted per day, however, has fallen in recent weeks, to an average of 5,376 tests a day for the seven days that ended Saturday. It’s a 23% drop from the seven days that ended Aug. 22.
Nonetheless, the testing still exceeds the state’s goal of 5,000 a day.
New Mexico is slowly phasing in relaxed health restrictions. A public health order that took effect last weekend allows restaurants and breweries to resume indoor dining at 25% of capacity.
