COVID-19 in numbers
New Mexico health officials reported 690 new COVID-19 cases yesterday, bringing the total to 243,085 cases; DOH has identified 211,164 of these as recovered. Bernalillo County had 220 new cases, followed by Lea County with 80 and Doña Ana County with 70. Santa Fe County had 13.
The state also announced 18 more deaths, 16 of them recently, including two from Santa Fe County: two women, one in their thirties and one in their 70s, who both had underlying illnesses and were hospitalized. There have now been 160 deaths in Santa Fe County and 4,649 nationwide. As of yesterday, 375 people with COVID-19 had been hospitalized – 23 more than the day before. Currently, 79% of New Mexicans aged 18 and over have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 69.2% are fully vaccinated. In the 12 to 17 age group, 62.5% of people received at least one dose and 51.6% are fully vaccinated. In Santa Fe County, 90.1% of those over 18 have received at least one dose and 79.7% are fully vaccinated.
You can read all of SFR’s COVID-19 coverage here.
DOH: Cases are falling, but transmission stays high
Amid a string of data in yesterday’s COVID-19 update, some good news surfaced: cases are declining nationwide and in schools, with hospital admissions expected to decline as well. However, daily deaths are likely to remain high for the coming weeks, and transmission in most states will also remain high. Therefore, the incumbent Minister of Health, Dr. David Scrase yesterday renewed the Public Health Ordinance that upholds the mask requirement for indoor public spaces. “Call me back when we’re at least in the orange range,” he said during the press conference, referring to a map showing most of the state colored red for high transmission (orange means significant transmission). “That is probably the time when we rethink what we want to do there.” DOH also previewed a consolidated website of data and resources on COVID-19, including a new report on vaccine involvement in the state. The deputy DOH secretary Dr. Laura Parajón says New Mexico continues to have high vaccination rates in counties that rank highest on the federal index of social vulnerability.
The data also shows a 37% decrease in cases of public school staff and students in the past week compared to the previous week, as well as positive low test positivity rates for school staff – 0.74% – according to Education Minister-designate Kurt Steinhaus, who announced the intent of the State to keep schools open for personal learning. The state Department of Education has launched a website allowing districts to register to participate in testing programs recently funded with a $ 63 million federal grant, and is calling on all districts and charter schools to improve COVID levels by October 1. Develop safety plans last year’s rule requiring school closings for those with four or more COVID-19 cases within 14 days. While yesterday’s news was more positive than it was recently, officials urged New Mexicans to remain vigilant. “There is some data today that looks pretty good,” Steinhaus said, “but let’s not relax. Let’s not slack off. Let’s keep our focus on keeping our schools safe so we can keep our schools open. “
Courts defend provisional release
Justice officials in New Mexico yesterday released data showing the pre-trial release is working in the state. According to a University of New Mexico study of 10,300 cases in the Bernalillo district between July 2017 and March 2020, of those charged and released from custody, 95% were arrested for non-violent crime while in custody; less than 1% were arrested for a first degree crime; and four out of five felony defendants released were not arrested while awaiting trial (those charged with offenses, minor offenses, and fourth degree crimes). “All New Mexicans share concerns about crime,” said Artie Pepin, director of the court’s administrative office, in a statement. “Objective research confirms improvements in pre-trial justice in New Mexico. Blaming judges and courts for crimes highlighted in news reports doesn’t make anyone safer. Serious evidence-based discussion among all stakeholders is the best approach to developing ways to reduce crime in Albuquerque and other communities. ”Crime in Albuquerque has been scrutinized in recent weeks, with Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham three dozen in mid-August Bernalillo County State Police deployed to specifically focus on violent crime in the Albuquerque area. The Albuquerque Journal reports that Albuquerque Governor, Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina and Second District Attorney Raúl Torrez support the reform of the bail system because a violent detention crime is “not marginalized” and “can be extreme for a family or community be devastating ”.
Heinrich pushes the university degree law
U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich, D-NM, yesterday introduced law authorizing the Federal Department of Education to distribute $ 62 billion to help college students graduate. The College Completion Fund Act would allocate funds to states based on a formula that uses poverty data from the census tract “to ensure funds reach underserved schools with the students who need help most,” a press release said . In addition, states would need to develop strategic plans to increase graduation and graduation rates, with a special focus on students from underserved and underrepresented communities, such as those from low-income backgrounds, parents of high school students, and student veterans. “We have focused on how we can get students into college for as long as we can, but we need to focus as much on how we can help students get through college,” Heinrich said in a statement. “Graduation is the key to long-term career success that promises higher education.” Heinrich presented the law last week at a virtual briefing by the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP). The legislation is also supported by The Institute for College Access & Success, Results for America, UnidosUS, and Third Way.
Listen
The opioid epidemic in New Mexico preceded that of the rest of the country, said Dr. Eileen Barrett, director of medical education at the University of New Mexico, who co-authored a study showing that nearly half of the state’s hospitals lack drugs to treat opioid addiction. KUNM recently spoke to Barrett about this deficit and its implications. “Ideally,” says Barrett, “if someone with an opioid use disorder wants treatment, they can be treated that day.” Opioid use disorder cannot be treated. For someone, this could mean that they are likely to withdraw, and that withdrawal increases the risk of leaving the hospital on advice, which then creates the risk of relapse into injecting or smoking behavior. They are then at an increased risk of overdose, as this dose could probably be too much for them when they return to taking it. “
Indigenous uprising
Journalist Jenni Monet (Pueblo of Laguna), founder of the newsletter Indigenously: Decolonizing Your Newsfeed, writes about Deb Haaland’s path to becoming the country’s first domestic minister for the fall issue of Sierra Club magazine. The complex and compelling story traces Haaland’s legendary journey, its historical context and the profound influence on the indigenous women who supported it. These include Shayai Lucero, a former Miss Indian World who followed Haaland’s March 15 confirmation hearing from her Laguna Pueblo flower shop, which she runs from a converted garage that once belonged to Haaland’s sister. When the confirmation hearings played on C-span, Lucero was preparing a wreath of marigolds for the grave of a young tribe member. “The grief she experienced as the only florist on the reservation weighed on her.” Her mother Cecelia gradually delivered the Senate vote, and when Haaland was confirmed, Lucero saw tears in her mother’s eyes. “People in Indian Country, it seems, have this sense of relief,” Lucero said. “We have been ignored for so long.”
Mushroom fun
Fall for many of us means a trip up the mountain to see the changing aspen trees (with Ski Santa Fe’s fall activities kicking off this Saturday with chairlift rides, music, disc golf, and more). For others, the time of year is the best time to go to the mountains to look for mushrooms. Edible New Mexico’s Fall Guidelines for Beginner Mushroom Hunters This Fall is a good time to find “bright orange lobster mushrooms, tasty oysters, and plenty of honey mushrooms,” according to the magazine. The advice ranges from going for granted that you should never eat a mushroom unless you are 100% sure what it is to other lesser-known tips such as: make a spore print, boil it, and kick join a local mushroom club. It just so happens that the New Mexico Mycological Society hosts field trips, meetings, and workshops on a regular basis. And while we’re talking about mushrooms, a group of New Mexico State University students teamed up for NASA’s Plant the Moon Challenge to see what types of plants could grow well in simulated lunar soil and experimented with mushrooms, Beans and spring onions. Team Zia Luna found that beans and onions “had a harder time growing, but the mushrooms did relatively well with a certain mix of wood chips, wheat bran, and plaster of paris”.
Autumn light
Rumor has it that Santa Fe’s high temperatures could fall into the 1970s next week. Right now, the National Weather Service is predicting a sunny day with a high of nearly 85 degrees and a northeast wind of 5 to 25 mph, turning west in the afternoon.
Thank you for reading! The word has trees on her mind, so appropriately she reads a recap of the favorite trees of writers in literature (including a selection from National Book Award winner and Santa Fe poet Arthur Sze).
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