With low vaccination rate in Las Cruces, City Council asking state to act

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico -- The Las Cruces City Council on Monday asked the state to send more Covid-19 vaccines to southern New Mexico.

"Doña Ana County has received proportionally fewer vaccines than all but a few counties in New Mexico," the resolution reads. "The State Department of Health should greatly increase the proportion of vaccines being delivered to Las Cruces and Doña Ana County."

Earlier this month, ABC-7 reported on the county's vaccination fate being the first worst in the state. On Monday, it had improved to the eighth worst in the state, according to the state's vaccine dashboard.

“You just want to be safe," said Larry Brown, a 69-year-old Doña Ana County man with hypertension earlier this month. "We worry a lot."

According to the state dashboard, 25.2% of Doña Ana County had received their first shots as of Monday morning. Seven counties had worse vaccination rates: Mckinley, Otero, Chaves, Eddy, Roosevelt, Curry and Torrance (in that order).

Earlier this month, a state spokesman blamed area providers for not vaccinating residents quickly enough when vaccines became available.

"In Doña Ana, some of the providers were a little less aggressive than in other places in the beginning," said Matt Bieber, a spokesman for the New Mexico Department of Health." It’s not to place blame at all. It’s just to name a fact. As a result, in those early days, DOH did send more vaccine to other places.”

You can watch the entire City Council meeting in the video player below.