COVID cases increase 67 percent

Hospitalizations begin to rise

COVID cases have continued to increase in Taos County with the spread of the Omicron variant. The county saw a 67 percent percent increase in its COVID-19 case

rate (cases per 100,000 people per week) this past week. Meanwhile, cases rose 42 percent nationally and 77 percent in New Mexico.

Town of Taos GIS Analyst Tim Corner said the Omicron variant is now thought to be “two to three times” more transmissible than the Delta variant, and “ten times” more transmissible than the original COVID variant. “This is reflected in a continuing rapid increase

in cases across the States, New Mexico and within Taos County,”

he said. “Hospitalizations are now also increasing, but at a slower

rate.” Despite this, Corner said the county can still expect a 50 percent

increase in hospitalizations in the coming weeks “and a record number of monthly COVID-related admissions by the end of January.”

Taos County reported a recordbreaking 245 new cases of COVID19 from Jan. 4 – Jan. 10, compared

to 141 new cases the week before, according to Corner. The total number of cases in the county is now at 3,610.

Two additional deaths were reported among Taos County residents in the past week, bringing the total number of deaths

to 75. The last two people to die of COVID in the county were a woman in her 70s and a man in

his 70s, both of whom were hospitalized.

Across New Mexico, 30 of 33 counties saw an increase in the

number of COVID-19 cases. The Northwest part of the state had the

fastest growing case rate, while the Southeast and Southwest had the slowest growth.

The average daily case count for the state increased to 2,983 cases

per day last week, up from 1,688 the week before. Meanwhile, the average deaths per day in the state

increased to 22 per day, up from 13 per day last week.

Every county in the state currently has a high transmission rate — defined by the The U.S. Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention as any county with more than 100 new cases per 100,000 persons in the past seven days.

The New Mexico Department of Health reports that the state

has seen more than 381,000 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began in March 2020, with a death

toll of 6,045. The CDC reports that more than 837,000 people have died in the U.S. due to COVID-19.

Taos County residents aged 18 and older are 88 percent fully vaccinated and 99 percent partially vaccinated, according to Corner. For the state as a whole, 76 percent are fully vaccinated and 89 percent are partially vaccinated, and 38

percent have received a booster shot. For younger New Mexicans (aged 12–17), 58 percent are fully vaccinated and 68 percent are partially vaccinated. Twenty percent of children aged 5-11 have been fully vaccinated, and 30 percent have been partially vaccinated. To get vaccinated, or sign up to get a booster shot, go to vaccinenm.org.