Copyright © 2021 Albuquerque Journal
“IF YOU WON’T GIVE ME A VACCINE, AT LEAST GIVE ME INFORMATION!”
That was the plea from Albuquerque resident B. Lee, who is trying to gauge the progress of the state’s centralized vaccination program, particularly as it pertains to seniors like him.
But the state Department of Health’s vaccine dashboard website, while continuing to make improvements, doesn’t provide a complete picture.
Last week, the DOH did revise its method of reporting vaccinations by county after learning its contractor had used a code that showed the number of doses per 100 residents by where they were vaccinated – rather than where they lived.
The new DOH method of reporting doses according to the county where the person resides altered the rankings of doses per 100 residents in several counties.
For instance, Santa Fe County dropped from fifth-highest in the state of doses per 100 residents, to 19th.
Sandoval County’s rate improved, moving from 30th-highest among 33 New Mexico counties to 20th.
Bernalillo County, the state’s most populous, dropped from 11th-highest before the change to 18th.
But it still isn’t clear from the DOH website how many people have received at least one dose of the vaccine in each county or their age group because only cumulative totals are given.
And vaccinations are a two-dose regimen, so the number of doses administered could be higher than the number of individuals who have received them.
The Journal was unsuccessful in obtaining a breakdown from the DOH.
And Lee, who has filed a public records request to try to get more information, hasn’t had any luck.
Lee has suggested the state regularly publish the number of unvaccinated people in each category and subcategory.
“Countless other New Mexicans face this situation, and even more want to know if they can plan a trip to see their children or grandchildren this spring or summer,” Lee told the Journal. “If the state would regularly publish the number of unvaccinated people in each category and subcategory, it would give us hope and help us plan for the future.”
