28th death reported for Quay

The New Mexico Department of Health last week reported the 27th and 28th COVID-19 deaths in Quay County since the pandemic began in the spring of 2020.

The latest victims:

• A woman in her 50s who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions;

• A woman in her 60s who had underlying conditions.

Both deaths were reported Dec. 20.

Twenty deaths — or more than 70% of the total — have occurred in the county since late May.

However, Quay County continued to show signs of a decline in the spread of the disease.

The DOH reported a total of 31 new confirmed cases last week in Quay County, including 11 on Thursday. No statewide report was issued Friday, on Christmas Eve.

Fifty-nine cases were reported in the county the previous week. As recently as early December, the county’s case numbers previously were in the 90 to 100 range.

The COVID Act Now website on Thursday also decreased Quay County’s risk for the disease from “severe risk” to “very high risk.”

According to epidemiology reports, Quay County recorded a COVID-19 case rate of 106.3 new cases per 100,000 people from Dec. 7 to Dec. 20, a sharp drop from the previous week’s level of more than 150. The county also recorded a test-positivity rate of 21.78%, falling slightly. Both were the second-worst rates in New Mexico.

Neighboring De Baca County remained the worst in both metrics, with a case rate of 163 per 100,000 and a test-positivity rate of 26.92%.

Neighboring Union and Roosevelt counties ranked third- and fifth-worst in the state, respectively.

The total number of cases in the county since the pandemic began in spring 2020 rose to 1,521 by Thursday.

Most of last week’s cases were reported in the Tucumcari or Logan ZIP codes.

The breakdown of COVID-19 cases by ZIP code in Quay County through Friday was 1,174 in Tucumcari, 243 in Logan, 66 in San Jon, 21 in House, 16 in McAlister, 15 in Bard and 12 in Nara Visa.

A total of 1,206 people in the county were deemed by the DOH to have recovered from the virus.

These COVID-19 rapid responses in the county were reported last week:

• Tricore Reference Laboratories, Tucumcari, one case reported Dec. 20;

• New Mexico Department of Transportation, McAlester, one case reported Dec. 20;

• Wells Fargo Bank, Tucumcari, one case reported Dec. 22;

• EPCAA Early Head Start, Tucumcari, one case reported Dec. 22.

A typical rapid response consists of isolating positive cases, quarantining close contacts, ceasing operations to the extent necessary to isolate affected areas, disinfecting these areas, implementing safety procedures and resuming operations. Typically, operations are ceased for fewer than 24 hours before it is safe to reopen.

In New Mexico, a total of 1,150 new COVID-19 cases were reported Thursday, bringing the total to more than 342,000 since the pandemic began.

Forty-four COVID-19 deaths were reported in the state Thursday, raising the total to 5,745.

A total of 546 people were hospitalized in New Mexico with the disease Thursday, a decrease of more than 70 from the previous week.

The Amarillo metro region on Thursday totaled 3,862 active cases of the disease, a decrease of more than 160 from the previous week, with a hospitalization rate of more than 19%.

The active-case count in the metro was about 300 earlier this summer.

The disease has killed 985 people in the Amarillo metro since the pandemic began.

In the U.S., more than 52.1 million people have been confirmed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, with more than 816,000 deaths, through Friday.

Vaccinations

The Quay County Family Health Center has scheduled another mass-vaccination event on Jan. 13 at the Quay County Fairgrounds Exposition Building from 8:30 to 11 a.m. and from noon to 2 p.m. During a previous vaccination event in mid-December, more than 200 were vaccinated.

All stages of the Modern vaccines will be administered, including first, second, third or booster shots. Walk-ins will be accepted. Those participating are asked to bring their insurance card, photo identification and vaccination card. Masks are required.

Trigg Memorial Hospital also will administer Moderna booster shots Wednesday and Thursday this week from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Those wishing to participate should call (575) 461-1700 to schedule an appointment and bring their vaccination card.

According to state data through Friday, 51% of Quay County residents have been fully vaccinated against coronavirus. That was an increase of 0.2% from the previous week.

About 57.5% of county residents have received one shot of COVID-19 vaccine through Friday, an increase of 0.3% from the previous week.

In New Mexico, 75.6% of eligible residents had been fully vaccinated by Friday, with 88.4% receiving at least one dose of vaccine.

Residents still can schedule vaccinations through the state’s registration portal at VaccineNM.org. Parents can sign up children over age 5 for vaccinations at the state’s portal at vaccineNM.org/kids or their health provider.

The Department of Health’s vaccination help line is available at 855-600-3453, option 3.

New Mexico residents age 18 and over also may now schedule a booster shot if:

• They received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine more than two months ago, or;

• They completed the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine series more than six months ago.

In the past 30 days, with 87% of the COVID-19 deaths in New Mexico have occurred with the unvaccinated.

State epidemiologist Christine Ross said during a briefing last week the new Omicron variant of the virus had been detected in 43 states, including New Mexico. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention projected 73% of new cases in the U.S. on Dec. 18 were Omicron.

Ross said the Delta variant remains the dominant strain in New Mexico. She said Omicron spreads more rapidly than earlier variants, but it remains unknown how sick it will make those who contract it or how effective vaccines will be against it.

Ross urged residents to receive vaccinations (including boosters), avoid large crowds, wear a well-fitting mask and get themselves tested for COVID-19 if they become sick.

Deputy Health Secretary Laura Parajon said the agency will distribute 20,000 free home COVID tests to poverty-stricken areas or areas with high transmission rates. President Joseph Biden also has pledged to mail free COVID home tests to households.