Lea County had 104 new COVID-19 related positive tests on Friday.
The Friday figure follows Thursdays when Lea County saw more than 600 cases appear on the state’s tally of COVID-19 in one day.
Out of the 612 cases reported Thursday, 331 are considered historical (meaning more than 14 days have passed since the specimen was collected) and should not be considered as reflecting the current levels of community transmission. Those late-arriving cases are the result of Nor-Lea Hospital finding a reporting error, which dated back over the course of at least 6 months. Out of the 612 cases reported Thursday, 281 are within 14 days of the date of specimen collection and are considered recent cases.
“The 331 cases that were not reported to NMDOH were a result of failure in Nor-Lea’s system interface between its lab instruments and the NM State Lab,” Nor-Lea said in a social media post.
“While the 331 cases seems high it occurred over a 212 day period. Multiple labs report out of Lea County making it difficult to discern a significant discrepancy on any given day; however, it became obvious that the numbers being reported out by NMDOH during the early stages of the most recent surge were too low as compared to what we were reporting. Nor-Lea immediately notified the NMDOH to determine the issue and made local officials aware of the situation over a week ago. The interface has been corrected by our vendor and as of this week is successfully reporting our rapid test results.
“Nor-Lea Hospital District regrets the error; however, all patients who tested positive throughout this period were notified promptly and given appropriate counseling,” Nor-Lea’s statement said.
As of Aug. 11, 2021, Gaines County has 12 new cases, 56 active cases, 1,468 recovered and 26 deaths with 1,550 cumulative cases. As of Aug. 11, 2021, Yoakum County has 35 new cases 55 active cases, 868 recovered and 15 deaths with 938 cumulative cases.
New Mexico state health officials on Friday announced 798 additional COVID-19 cases. Per the state Department of Health, the most recent cases are:
- 197 new cases in Bernalillo County
- 53 new cases in Chaves County
- 7 new cases in Cibola County
- 7 new cases in Colfax County
- 18 new cases in Curry County
- 42 new cases in Doña Ana County
- 83 new cases in Eddy County
- 1 new case in Guadalupe County
- 1 new case in Hidalgo County
- 104 new cases in Lea County
- 18 new cases in Lincoln County
- 2 new cases in Los Alamos County
- 9 new cases in Luna County
- 22 new cases in McKinley County
- 43 new cases in Otero County
- 5 new cases in Quay County
- 4 new cases in Rio Arriba County
- 17 new cases in Roosevelt County
- 37 new cases in Sandoval County
- 33 new cases in San Juan County
- 8 new cases in San Miguel County
- 28 new cases in Santa Fe County
- 3 new cases in Sierra County
- 7 new cases in Socorro County
- 2 new cases in Taos County
- 6 new cases in Torrance County
- 40 new cases in Valencia County
- 1 new case among individuals held by federal agencies at the Cibola County Correctional Center
The Department of Health on Friday reported five additional deaths in New Mexico related to COVID-19:
- A female in her 60s from Bernalillo County. The individual was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
- A male in his 60s from Bernalillo County. The individual was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
- A female in her 70s from Bernalillo County. The individual was hospitalized.
- A male in his 50s from Eddy County. The individual was hospitalized.
- A male in his 80s Eddy County. The individual was hospitalized.
The number of deaths of New Mexico residents related to COVID-19 is now 4,446.
There have been 205 COVID-19 related deaths in Lea County since the state began tracking numbers.
The ten ZIP codes across the state with the most COVID-19 cases on Friday, Aug. 13 are:
88220 – 52
88240 – 50
88260 – 40
87121 – 29
87114 – 27
88310 – 27
88203 – 26
88210 – 26
87031 – 25
88201 – 24
Daily case counts and test numbers are raw data based on information the state receives today – meaning data that has not yet been scrutinized to identify potential duplicates or late-arriving positives or negatives.
Including the above newly reported cases, New Mexico has now had a total of 218,569Â COVID-19 cases:
Bernalillo County: 62,682
Catron County: 109
Chaves County: 9,665
Cibola County: 2,977
Colfax County: 846
Curry County: 5,712
De Baca County: 199
Doña Ana County: 25,995
Eddy County: 8,060
Grant County: 1,828
Guadalupe County: 490
Harding County: 13
Hidalgo County: 478
Lea County: 9,817
Lincoln County: 2,016
Los Alamos County: 582
Luna County: 3,506
McKinley County: 12,797
Mora County: 186
Otero County: 4,435
Quay County: 628
Rio Arriba County: 3,990
Roosevelt County: 2,195
Sandoval County: 12,999
San Juan County: 16,356
San Miguel County: 1,558
Santa Fe County: 11,162
Sierra County: 813
Socorro County: 1,382
Taos County: 1,837
Torrance County: 947
Union County: 267
Valencia County: 7,370
County totals are subject to change upon further investigation and determination of residency of individuals positive for COVID-19.
The Department of Health currently reports the following numbers of COVID-19 cases among individuals held by the New Mexico Corrections Department at the following facilities:
- Central New Mexico Correctional Facility in Valencia County: 302
- Guadalupe County Correctional Facility: 255
- Lea County Correctional Facility: 762
- Northeast New Mexico Correctional Facility in Union County: 169
- Northwest New Mexico Correctional Center in Cibola County: 130
- Otero County Prison Facility: 473
- Penitentiary of New Mexico in Santa Fe County: 219
- Roswell Correctional Center: 229
- Southern New Mexico Correctional Facility in Doña Ana County: 231
- Springer Correctional Center in Colfax County: 151
- Western New Mexico Correctional Facility in Cibola County: 75
As of Friday, there are 296 individuals hospitalized in New Mexico for COVID-19. This number may include individuals who tested positive for COVID-19 out of state but are currently hospitalized in New Mexico. This number does not include New Mexicans who tested positive for COVID-19 and may have been transferred to a hospital out of state.
New Mexicans who report symptoms of COVID-19 infection, such as fever, cough, shortness of breath, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea, and/or loss of taste or smell should call their health care provider or the NMDOH COVID-19 hotline immediately (1-855-600-3453).
The Department of Health strongly encourages the following groups to get tested:
- Symptomatic people displaying the COVID-19 symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea, and/or loss of taste or smell;
- Asymptomatic people who are close contacts or household members of people in their infectious period who have already tested positive for the coronavirus;
- Asymptomatic people who live or work in congregate settings such as long-term care facilities and group homes;
- Patients who are scheduled for surgery and whose provider has advised them to get tested before the procedure.
New Mexicans who have non-health-related questions or concerns can also call 833-551-0518 or visit newmexico.gov, which is being updated regularly as a one-stop source for information for families, workers, and others affected by and seeking more information about COVID-19.
