New Mexico governor outlines re-opening plan after shutdown, calls nearby El Paso ‘horrific’ on virus

SANTA FE, New Mexico – Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, alongside other state officials, held a briefing Monday on the current trajectory of the Covid-19 pandemic in the state after a two-week statewide shutdown.

New Mexico is moving into a three-tiered (red, yellow, green) county-by-county system of reopening to take effect on Wednesday, which the governor discussed.

Counties that want fewer restrictions must hit one of two risk criteria: a positive test rate less than five percent for two weeks or a two-week average of less than 8 cases per 100,000 people. 

As of Monday, 32 of 33 counties in New Mexico were at the red level. Only Los Alamos County was in yellow, which would make it eligible to shed some restrictions on mass gatherings and resume indoor dining at restaurants.

At the red level, businesses can still reopen but with the following tight restrictions:

• Essential retail spaces like grocery stores can only operate at 25% capacity or 75 customers, whichever is smaller.
• Restaurants and drink establishments can have outdoor dining at 25% capacity, but no indoor dining.
• Close contact businesses like hair salons and gyms can reopen at 25 percent capacity or 10 customers, whichever is smaller.
• Outdoor recreational facilities are at 25%.
• Close contact recreational facilities, such as movie theaters, indoor museums, and bars must stay closed.
• Houses of worship are at 25% capacity.
• Places of lodging can operate at 40% capacity if they are New Mexico safe certified. The others are at 25%.
• All other businesses are at 25% capacity or 75 customers.

Click here to see the breakdown of the tier-system and click here to see the official map displaying each county’s current level.

On Monday, New Mexico reported 1,684 new Covid-19 cases for total infections to date of 97,095. There were 28 additional deaths, including two victims in their 30s with no underlying conditions, for a death toll of 1,568.

In southern New Mexico's Doña Ana County there were 131 new cases on Monday, as well as three deaths involving a man in his 70s and women in their 70s and 80s.

The governor said Doña Ana County faced a unique challenge with the virus' spread rate because of adjoining Texas. She described Covid-19 conditions in neighboring El Paso, where there are over 37,000 active infections (roughly one out of every 20 people) as simply "horrific."

Lujan Grisham also took a moment to at her briefing to reflect on the loss of "beloved" Las Cruces educator Silvia Garcia, who died in a hospital on Sunday from Covid. The governor said she spoke with Garcia's earlier Monday to extend her condolences.

Top officials with some of the state's largest health care providers said Monday that hospitals are full and modeling shows capacity will continue to be surpassed over the coming weeks, despite the state's lockdown on many businesses.

There were 874 people currently being treated for Covid-19 in the state's hospitals, with 146 of those patients on ventilators. There were just 16 Covid ICU beds available in the entire state on Monday, with just two in southern New Mexico - and only one in Doña Ana County.

At least 18 healthcare works in the state have lost their lives to date to Covid-19, explained Dr. David Scrasse, the governor's top medical advisor in her cabinet.

The pandemic and companion health restrictions are also taking a heavy economic toll on the state economy. State lawmakers last week enacted and the governor signed a $330 million relief package aimed at helping out-of-work New Mexicans and certain businesses that have been hit hard.