New Mexico governor announces 80 new coronavirus cases but no new COVID-19 deaths

This story was last updated at 4:37 p.m.

SANTA FE — Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced in a livestreamed press conference from the state Capitol Wednesday, April 15, that New Mexico has confirmed 80 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases to 1,484. 

She reported there were no new deaths related to the novel coronavirus, but 90 individuals are hospitalized statewide with 22 requiring ventilators. 

The death count remains at 36 statewide and one in Doña Ana County

The new positive tests include four additional confirmations in Doña Ana County.

The DOH has designated 353 COVID-19 cases as having recovered.

As Human Services Secretary David Scrase showed Wednesday, the highest concentration of cases per capita are still in the state's northwestern corner in McKinley, Sandoval and San Juan counties. 

In an update on supplies of personal protective gear for medical personnel, Lujan Grisham said 400 additional ventilators were expected to arrive next week along with 200,000 respirator masks, over 1.5 million N95 masks and more than 600,000 disposable gloves.

An additional 1,000 ventilators were also pending, she said, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Officials: 'Social distancing' is working

Scrase, a physician, said that the rate of new cases was slowing, with the doubling rate (measured as the number of days required for total cases to double) at approximately 4.6 days as of April 13.

A month ago, shortly after New Mexico's first cases were announced on March 11, the doubling rate had been two days. 

Scrase attributed the slowing rate of confirmed cases (occurring as the state has rapidly increased testing) to adherence to "social distancing," showing data that New Mexicans had reduced their travel by 45 percent. Scrase added, however, that health experts hoped to see a larger decrease still. 

The governor noted that the ratio of hospital patients requiring ventilators remained comparatively low, and stressed repeatedly during the news conference that public health orders closing nonessential businesses and limiting social gatherings had allowed the state to "bend the curve" in the rate of new cases. 

More: Republicans push back on coronavirus business restrictions

Acknowledging frustrations at the economic impact of public health orders in effect through April restricting or closing most businesses, and urging New Mexicans to stay home as much as possible, Lujan Grisham argued that an economic recovery plan had to take place in tandem with confronting the public health emergency through widespread testing, plus isolation and contact-tracing for individuals testing positive. 

To that end, she said that New Mexico and the Trump Administration were in talks about a pilot testing and contact-tracing program in New Mexico. 

In the meantime, she responded to pushback this week from some small business owners and the state Republican Party and said a uniform policy, rather than allowing different restrictions for individual counties, was needed to slow transmission of the virus.

The governor also said she found it "appalling" to see some hospitals reducing staff amid preparations for a peak in cases anticipated to come in May. 

While the state has issued public health orders restricting nonessential or elective procedures, DOH Secretary Kathy Kunkel and Scrase insisted providers had discretion as far proceeding with preventative screenings or other procedures, and that the DOH was consulting with medical providers as necessary. 

Lujan Grisham suggested that some medical facilities were moving to secure profits for the year despite knowing that federal support for hospitals was presumed to be on the way. 

More labs processing COVID-19 tests

Kunkel reported that testing capacity has expanded to where the state can process 3,500 tests daily, while testing sites continue to expand and Sandia National Laboratories prepares to expand its testing services. 

Later in the conference, Lujan Grisham said even with the recent closures of some TriCore Reference Laboratories facilities, the state could still run "at least 3,000" daily as more laboratories are now involved in the process. 

New Mexico residents may be considered for COVID-19 testing under several circumstances: 

• Asymptomatic people who are close contacts or household members of New Mexico residents who have already tested positive for the coronavirus;
• asymptomatic residents in nursing homes;
• asymptomatic people in congregate settings such as homeless shelters, group homes, detention centers;
• symptomatic people displaying the COVID-19 symptoms of cough, fever or shortness of breath. 

New Mexicans who report symptoms of COVID-19 infection (fever, cough, or shortness of breath) are directed to call their health care provider or the NMDOH COVID-19 hotline at 1-855-600-3453.

Questions not related to health were directed to call 1-833-551-0518 or visit http://www.NewMexico.gov.

Additionally, Scrase highlighted Wednesday that the state has unveiled a new mobile app, NMConnect, offering 24-hour crisis and non-crisis behavioral health support. 

The DOH maintains a dedicated page with COVID-19 information and data accessible at http://cv.NMHealth.org.

Governor urges absentee voting

Responding to Tuesday evening's ruling by the New Mexico Supreme Court turning down a request to authorize a vote-by-mail election for the June 2 primaries, Lujan Grisham urged New Mexicans to vote absentee. 

"Polling places will pose a difficult situation where people are congregating," she said, adding, "Even with distancing, and even with do-it-yourself masks and protection for poll workers, it is still a risk." 

The Secretary of State will mail registered voters applications for absentee ballots that require response from voters before ballots are issued. 

Without commenting directly on a federal complaint filed over the weekend by Legacy Church seeking an injunction against the health department for extending a prohibition against mass gatherings larger than five people to churches on the eve of Easter, Lujan Grisham said the majority of churches had moved to livestreaming or remote services and that only a single cease and desist order had been issued to a place of worship Sunday. 

By the numbers

The 80 new cases, divided by county were reported by the state Department of Health as follows:

• 13 new cases in Bernalillo County
• 1 new case in Cibola County
• 4 new cases in Doña Ana County
• 1 new case in Grant County
• 38 new cases in McKinley County
• 9 new cases in Sandoval County
• 11 new cases in San Juan County
• 2 new cases in Santa Fe County
• 1 new case in Socorro County

The total number of cases, corrected Wednesday to account for duplicate cases previously reported in San Juan County, stood as follows:

• Bernalillo County: 477
• Catron County: 1
• Chaves County: 19
• Cibola County: 29
• Colfax County: 2
• Curry County: 10
• Doña Ana County: 54
• Eddy County: 7
• Grant County: 11
• Lea County: 2
• Lincoln County: 1
• Los Alamos County: 6
• Luna County: 2
• McKinley County: 242
• Otero County: 3
• Quay County: 1
• Rio Arriba County: 10
• Roosevelt County: 1
• Sandoval County: 262
• San Juan County: 200
• San Miguel County: 2
• Santa Fe County: 78
• Socorro County: 16
• Taos County: 15
• Torrance County: 12
• Valencia County: 21

The DOH said it was investigating cases without a known source of exposure and has reported community spread in Bernalillo, Doña Ana, McKinley, Otero, Sandoval, San Juan, and Santa Fe counties.

Algernon D'Ammassa can be reached at 575-541-5451, adammassa@lcsun-news.com or @AlgernonWrites on Twitter.