COVID cases rise 4 percent in Taos County
U.S. hospitalizations rise slightly
The COVID-19 case rate has risen just slightly throughout Taos County (with 79 cases per 100,000 people per week) this past week. The county saw 26 new cases, compared to 25 cases the week before, according to Town of Taos GIS Analyst Tim Corner. Meanwhile, cases were up 25 percent throughout the state and 10 percent nationally.
In New Mexico, the sevenday-average daily case count has decreased to 204 cases per week, compared to 163 the previous week. The total number of cases in the county is now at 5,387. A total of 5,223 patients in Taos County are reported to have recovered from the virus.
No additional deaths were reported among Taos County residents in the past week, leaving the total number of deaths to 90 since March 1, 2020. One person died of COVID in the past three weeks, making for a total of 17 COVIDrelated deaths in Taos County in 2022.
“Cases increased again last week in most parts of the United States, but at a slower rate than the prior week,” said Corner in an email. “According to the CDC, 90 percent of counties in the nation, and all but one county in New Mexico, are considered to have a low level of COVID-19 in the community. Hospitalizations in New Mexico are at their lowest since the early weeks of the pandemic in April 2020.”
When COVID cases began to creep up throughout April, New Mexico chose to renew some of its public health orders, including requiring masks in hospitals, state correctional facilities and schools — if the school has not made a masking decision otherwise.
The New Mexico Department of Health reports that the state has seen more than 523,000 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began in March of 2020, with a death toll of 7,523. The CDC reports that more than 991,000 people have died in the U.S. due to COVID-19, and is reporting there are approximately 11,411 hospitalizations nationwide, up from 10,340 hospitalizations last week.
Taos County residents (aged 18 and up) remain 89 percent fully vaccinated, 99 percent partially vaccinated and 59 percent boosted. For the state as a whole, 78 percent are fully vaccinated, 91 percent are partially vaccinated and 46 percent have received a booster shot. For younger New Mexicans (aged 12–17), 62 percent are fully vaccinated and 71 percent are partially vaccinated. According to Corner, 31 percent of children aged 5-11 have been fully vaccinated and 39 percent have been partially vaccinated.
To get vaccinated, or to sign up to get a booster shot, go to vaccinenm.org.