New virus cases drop again

Another 15 COVID-19 deaths send state’s total past 3,300

New Mexico recorded its lowest daily COVID-19 case count since mid-October with 434 cases announced in an update Tuesday afternoon. The last time the number dropped this low was Oct. 13, when 355 cases were tallied.

At that time there were only three new deaths reported from the virus while, on Tuesday, an additional 15 pushed the death toll past 3,300.

The rolling average of cases has been on a steady decline since early January and, in the past week, the average number of deaths has followed suit. The seven-day averages currently sit at 670 cases and 19 deaths a day.

Of the 15 most recent deaths, all but five had reported underlying conditions. The deceased mainly ranged in age from their 40s to their 80s but a Doña Ana County man in his 30s — with no underlying conditions — also died.

The majority of new cases came from Bernalillo and Doña Ana counties with 116 and 50, respectively.

Since March, there have been 174,982 COVID-19 cases and 3,310 deaths from the virus in New Mexico.

There are currently 492 people hospitalized with the virus across the state and, so far, 105,568 cases have been designated as recovered by the New Mexico Department of Health.