DOH: 116 new cases at Otero County prison facility; 227 total new COVID-19 cases

The New Mexico Department of Health announced 227 additional positive cases in the state, with the majority coming from the Otero County Prison Facility.  The state also announced five additional deaths related to the disease, with four of the five coming from northwestern New Mexico. With the 227 new cases, including 116 among those held […]

DOH: 116 new cases at Otero County prison facility; 227 total new COVID-19 cases

The New Mexico Department of Health announced 227 additional positive cases in the state, with the majority coming from the Otero County Prison Facility. 

The state also announced five additional deaths related to the disease, with four of the five coming from northwestern New Mexico.

With the 227 new cases, including 116 among those held by the state Department of Corrections at the Otero County Prison Facility, the state now has 8,024 confirmed cases of COVID-19. The number of deaths of New Mexicans related to the disease is now 367.

Detention centers have seen many massive outbreaks throughout the country, something that New Mexico had largely avoided until now. The 116 new cases bring the total number of those held by the state of New Mexico at the Otero County Prison Facility to 162; another 66 held by federal agencies at the facility have also tested positive, though no new cases were reported Tuesday.

The state provided some information on the five newly announced deaths:

  • A female in her 90s from Bernalillo County who had underlying conditions and was a resident of the Uptown Genesis facility in Albuquerque.
  • A male in his 80s from Cibola County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions. The individual was a resident of the Good Samaritan Society facility in Grants.
  • A male in his 30s from McKinley County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
  • A male in his 50s from McKinley County who had underlying conditions.
  • A female in her 50s from San Juan County who was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.

DOH did not provide specific information on which underlying conditions the deceased had.

The state also announced that 182 people in New Mexico were hospitalized for COVID-19 on Tuesday, a drop of nine cases since Monday. This number could include those who tested positive in other states but are hospitalized in New Mexico, but would not include those who tested positive in New Mexico and are hospitalized in other states. 

DOH also announced that 2,960 people are now designated as recovered by health officials, an increase of 72 over Monday’s announcement.

Test details

The state’s COVID-19 information website said that the state has processed 206,837 tests as of Tuesday, an increase of 3,722 over the number on Monday.

While the majority of cases came from the Otero County Prison Facility, San Juan (42), McKinley (30) and Bernalillo (15) counties each had double-digit amounts of cases. No other county had more than four newly announced cases.

The state separates the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases among inmates held by the state Department of Corrections and federal agencies from the counties in which those facilities reside.

  • 15 new cases in Bernalillo County
  • 1 new case in Chaves County
  • 2 new cases in Cibola County
  • 2 new cases in Curry County
  • 3 new cases in Doña Ana County
  • 2 new cases in Lincoln County
  • 1 new case in Luna County
  • 30 new cases in McKinley County
  • 1 new case in Rio Arriba County
  • 3 new cases in Sandoval County
  • 42 new cases in San Juan County
  • 4 new cases in Santa Fe County
  • 1 new case in Socorro County
  • 1 new case in Taos County
  • 3 new cases in Valencia County
  • 116 new cases among New Mexico Corrections Department inmates at the Otero County Prison Facility

The state also provided a breakdown of total cases, along with corrections from previous days’ announced totals. 

The state said one case in each of Eddy, Roosevelt and San Juan counties were determined to be duplicates and have been removed from the total. Another case previously attributed to Bernalillo County was found to be a New Mexico Corrections Department inmate at the Penitentiary of New Mexico. Four cases that were reported to be inmates at the Otero County Prison Facility held by federal agencies were instead held by the state Corrections Department.

  • Bernalillo County: 1,499
  • Catron County: 2
  • Chaves County: 51
  • Cibola County: 145
  • Colfax County: 5
  • Curry County: 55
  • Doña Ana County: 479
  • Eddy County: 23
  • Grant County: 15
  • Guadalupe County: 20
  • Harding County: 1
  • Hidalgo County: 1
  • Lea County: 26
  • Lincoln County: 4
  • Los Alamos County: 6
  • Luna County: 9
  • McKinley County: 2,480
  • Otero County: 22
  • Quay County: 5
  • Rio Arriba County: 49
  • Roosevelt County: 41
  • Sandoval County: 572
  • San Juan County: 1,813
  • San Miguel County: 15
  • Santa Fe County: 148
  • Sierra County: 1
  • Socorro County: 52
  • Taos County: 30
  • Torrance County: 32
  • Union County: 4
  • Valencia County: 77

DOH reported the number of confirmed cases among inmates held by federal agencies at the following facilities:

  • Cibola County Correctional Center: 2
  • Otero County Prison Facility: 66
  • Otero County Processing Center: 92
  • Torrance County Detention Facility: 18

DOH reported the number of cases among inmates held by the New Mexico Corrections Department at the following facilities:

  • Central New Mexico Correctional Facility in Valencia County: 1
  • Otero County Prison Facility: 162
  • Penitentiary of New Mexico in Santa Fe County: 1

The state also said that a total of 41 acute care or long-term care facilities have at least one confirmed case of COVID-19 among patients and/or staff. 

Under the current state public health order, all residents must wear cloth masks to help slow the spread of COVID-19. The state said medical-grade masks should be saved for first responders and medical personnel. Most non-essential businesses have reopened in limited capacity, including restaurants.

The state will allow any worker to get tested for COVID-19, regardless of symptoms. The state advises individuals who are experiencing symptoms of a COVID-19 infection—fever, cough, or shortness of breath—to call their health care provider or the NMDOH COVID-19 hotline immediately (1-855-600-3453). Those with non-health-related questions or concerns can also call 833-551-0518 or visit https://newmexico.gov.

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