We began the COVID-19 recap at NM Political Report on March 11 of last year. Since then, we have published hundreds of editions of the recap, including seven days a week for several weeks, then for most weekdays following. In recent weeks, the daily recaps have been getting shorter and shorter, as COVID-19 news starts to slow down.
Starting next week, we will go to a weekly format, with a post each Friday recapping the week’s news from around the state. I hope you’ll continue to read the recap and let your friends know about it.
Now on to the recap.
- The New Mexico Department of Health reported 209 new cases of COVID-19 and 19 additional deaths related to the disease on Tuesday. Of the deaths, 14 were death certificates for New Mexico residents issued between Jan. 20 and Feb. 20. The state has now found 187,238 cases and identified 3,830 deaths related to the disease. The number of those hospitalized for COVID-19 dropped to 128 as of Tuesday.
- The latest vaccination update on the state’s vaccine dashboard, from Monday, showed 681,771 doses administered, including 25.4 percent of New Mexicans 16 or older with at least one shot and 14.5 percent of those 16 or older fully vaccinated (either with both doses of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine or the one shot Johnson & Johnson).
- KRQE-TV has more data on the vaccination rollout by phase.
- The Navajo Nation is outpacing states in vaccination rates, the Navajo Times reported.
- The state of New Mexico announced earlier this week that they would fully reopen all K-12 schools by April 5, KUNM-FM (and everyone else) reported.
- The Santa Fe New Mexican wrote about the timeline for districts to plan on getting kids back to classrooms.
- Teachers and other school staff are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, the Associated Press reported.
- Alamogordo Public Schools will meet to discuss a return to full in-person learning, the Alamogordo Daily News reported.
- The plan to reopen in-person learning is causing conflicts, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
- Albuquerque Public Schools is working on a school bus plan, KRQE-TV reported.
- Silver High School closed for ten days because of a positive COVID-19 test, the Silver City Daily Press reported.
- In San Juan County, school officials expressed optimism over the announcement, the Farmington Daily Times reported.
- A virtual benefit concert raised $860,000 in funding for feeding needy New Mexicans, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported.
- The state House passed legislation to include COVID-19 in workers compensation benefits for those who could prove their employer did not comply with state public health orders, Walter Rubel reported.
- KUNM-FM’s Let’s Talk New Mexico will talk about COVID-19 vaccines on Thursday at 8 a.m.
- The New Mexico Restaurant Association said more than 200 restaurants in the state closed during the pandemic, KOB-TV reported.
