The number of Coronavirus cases in New Mexico has doubled since there were 237 on March 30 and yesterday when there were 496. [1] Rio Arriba County is up to five. [2] Bernalillo County with Albuquerque still has the highest number of cases.
The statistics are useful if you’re comparing them with other parts of the country. You can say, "oh, we’re not so bad." After all, one county in Louisiana has about as many people as Rio Arriba, but almost 300 people have tested positive for Coronavirus. [3]
Published reports don’t include the number of individuals who are in hospitals, which is more important if you’re planning a public health response. The local hospital has a total of 34 beds, and experts believe it can handle "16 to 20 COVID-19 hospitalizations." [4]
The New York Times provided more useful information for understanding the seriousness of the contagion in a specific area. It calculated the number of cases per 100,000 people. [5]
By this measure, Sandoval County, between Albuquerque and Santa Fé, has the highest infection rate, 46.9, in the state. Three of the next six are in Navajo country: McKinley County has 43.9, San Juan 39.2, and Cibola 29.7 reports per 100,000 people.
The tourist meccas of Taos (39.5) and Santa Fé (34.9) are higher than Bernalillo (29.8). The governor’s orders that stopped the easy movement of people between these areas probably helped Española because local people had fewer contacts with tourists in hotels, restaurants, and other places in those cities.
The disease rates are lower in Chaves County (Roswell) with 19.9 and Rio Arriba with 12.7 cases per 100,000 people.
One reads these numbers for one reason: to assess one’s chance of getting sick. If the numbers remain stable, one feels a bit relieved; if they increase, one considers more ways to avoid contact with silent carriers.
This is the reason one would like to know more about the demographics. In China, we were told the people who died tended to older. Many were men who had smoked, and thus had weakened lungs. [6]
This reinforced the feelings of invincibility among the young.
It also led some to think that since the people who were affected no longer were making contributions to the economy, the disease should run its course without impairing the ability of the middle aged to continue working. This was promoted on Fox News by Tucker Carlson and Brit Hume. [7]
No one is reporting ethnicity, except the head of the Navajo nation. And for good reason. Asian-Americans already have been attacked on the streets. [8] But still, I’m sure many would like to know if the unique genetic inheritance of people descended from the earliest settlers in New Mexico makes them more or less vulnerable to the Coronavirus.
Sources:
1. Wikipedia. "2020 Coronavirus Pandemic in New Mexico." Updated daily.
2. "Coronavirus in New Mexico: Map and Case Count." The New York Times website. Tab US Cases. Tab Select a State. Updated 4 April 2020.
3. Dan Goldberg and Alice Miranda Ollstein. "Virus Hot Spots in South Poised for Disproportionate Suffering." Politico website. 3 April 2020. The total population of Saint John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana, was 45, 924 in 2010; [9] the number in Rio Arriba that year was 40,246. [10]
4. Lauren Reichelt, Rio Arriba County Health and Human Services Director. Quoted by Molly Montgomery. Rio Grande Sun, Española, New Mexico, website. 19 March 2020; last updated 26 March 2020. "We estimate that we can handle 16 to 20 COVID-19 hospitalizations before we become overwhelmed. That means we can effectively address from 80 to 100 cases of COVID-19 in the Española Valley, which is the hospital’s catchment area."
5. The New York Times. The problems in the northwestern part of the state were mentioned in the second entry for March 25.
6. Karen Weintraub. "Coronavirus’ Top Targets: Men, Seniors, Smokers." WebMD website. 26 February 2020.
7. Matthew Rozsa. "Fox News’ Brit Hume: ‘Entirely reasonable’ for elderly to risk getting coronavirus to save economy." Salon website. March 25, 2020. Many others reported these comments at time they were made; this source was still available this morning.
8. Steve Mullis and Heidi Glenn. "New Site Collects Reports Of Racism Against Asian Americans Amid Coronavirus Pandemic." National Public Radio website. 27 March 2020. Russell Jeung, San Francisco State University, set up website to track attacks on Asian-Americans. It received 650 reports in eight days.
9. Wikipedia. "St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana."
10. Wikipedia. "Rio Arriba County, New Mexico."
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