SANTA FE – New Mexico state health officials announced 281 positive cases of COVID-19 and four deaths. Between March 26 and March 30, positive cases of novel coronavirus have increased from 136 to 281 in the state of New Mexico.

The state has also seen four deaths.  That number increased by three over the last four days. At this time the department of health has confirmed one death in Eddy County and one in Bernalillo County. Confirmation of the other two deaths by county is currently pending.

McKinley County is the site of 12 cases.

The other 269 cases are in the following counties:

Benalillo County          117

Chaves County             10

Cibola  County                2

Curry County                  3

Doña Ana County          18

Eddy County                   4

Lea County                     2

Rio Arriba County            3

Roosevelt County            1

San Juan County            27

San Miguel County           1

Sandoval County            22

Santa Fe County            38

Socorro County                3

Taos County                   10

Torrance County               3

Valencia County                5

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — According to the Navajo Department of Health and Navajo Area Indian Health Service, in coordination with the Navajo Epidemiology Center, the number of positive tests for COVID-19 has reached a total of 128 for the Navajo Nation as of Sunday. There are two confirmed deaths related to COVID-19 as reported previously.

The 128 cases include the following counties:

Navajo County, AZ: 59

Apache County, AZ: 17 *changed due to clarification of one individual’s residency

Coconino County, AZ: 23

McKinley County, NM: 8

San Juan County, NM: 15

Cibola County, NM: 1

San Juan County, UT: 5

The Navajo Nation issued a new Public Health Order extending the current “Stay at Home Order” and implementing a curfew for the entire Navajo Nation that requires everyone to stay home from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., seven days a week. All individuals shall be at home during curfew hours except in the event of an emergency. This curfew does not apply to essential employees reporting to or from duty, with official identification and/or a letter of designation from their essential business employer on official letterhead which includes a contact for verification.

“Stay home, stay safe! We are doing our best to keep people safe, but the government can’t do everything and that’s why everyone needs to stay home as much as possible. Every person is responsible for taking precautions to preserve their own health. This curfew is an added measure to protect our Navajo people, especially our elderly and high-risk. Everyone should read the new order entirely,” Nez said.

“Washing your hands often, avoid direct person-to-person contact with others, and stay home – that’s how we begin to beat the virus. We don’t have enough doctors, nurses, first responders, hospital beds, ventilators, and other resources to treat everyone. We have to do our part by preventing the spread of the virus,” Lizer said.

The Public Health Order also outlines the following provisions for essential businesses:

• To the greatest extent possible, limit operations before 6:00 A.M. and after 7:00 P.M. to permit customers to obey the 8:00 P.M. to 5 A.M. curfew.   This does not apply to Essential Businesses that do not directly serve customers.
• Restaurants and other businesses serving prepared food must provide an outdoor order station and/or a means for people to call ahead to place an order and enable individuals to remain in their vehicles for pick-up.
• Gas stations must either provide a fueling attendant to pump gas, enabling individuals to remain in their vehicles, or provide disinfectant wipes or spray for self-service customer use.
• Banks and financial institutions must provide drive-thru services only.  Banker services can be provided to customers through technology-based means (i.e. telephone, web-based meeting, etc).  ATM services may be provided so long as disinfectant wipes or spray is made available for customer use.
• Grocery stores, food banks, convenience stores, hardware stores and the like are required to limit the number of customers in the store to no more than 10 customers at a time.  These businesses shall ensure that customers waiting to enter or pay maintain the required 6-feet Social Distancing.
• Post Offices, including rural mail delivery locations, are not required to provide curb-side or drive-thru delivery requirements, however disinfectant wipes or spray should be made available for customer use.
• Laundry facilities shall limit customer occupancy to 2 people per household and no more than 10 persons at any given time, and shall make available disinfectant wipes or spray for customer use.
• All other Essential Businesses not specifically addressed in this section shall post a notice at their place of business with a contact number for customers to receive service during business hours, and also provide contact information for services on their company website, if any.   The purpose of this requirement is to limit in-person customer contact to the greatest extent possible, while still allowing customers to receive services.

Lastly, the Public Health Order requires all Navajo Nation governmental entities, including all branches of government and all Governance-Certified Chapters, shall coordinate all COVID-19 public health efforts, plans, and relief through the Health Command Center to avoid duplication of effort or waste of resources, which has the potential to increase risk of exposure to COVID-19, including the potential loss of life.

For more information including reports, helpful prevention tips, and more resources, please visit the Navajo Department of Health’s COVID-19 website at http://www.ndoh.navajo-nsn.gov/COVID-19. To contact the main Navajo Health Command Operations Center, please call (928) 871-7014.

NINE POSITIVE CASES IN MCKINLEY COUNTY

SANTA FE – New Mexico state health officials on Sunday announced 29 additional positive tests for COVID-19.

Per the state Department of Health, the most recent cases are:

• 9 new cases in Bernalillo County
• 1 new case in Chaves County
• 2 new cases in Curry County
• 1 new case in Eddy County
• 4 new cases in McKinley County
• 4 new cases in San Juan County
• 3 new cases in Sandoval County
• 4 new cases in Santa Fe County
• 1 new case in Valencia County

The number of deaths in the state related to COVID-19 remains at two.

Including the above newly reported cases, New Mexico has now had a total of 237 positive tests for COVID-19:

Bernalillo County: 101
Chaves County: 8
Cibola County: 2
Curry County: 3
Doña Ana County: 17
Eddy County: 4
Lea County: 2
McKinley County: 9
Rio Arriba County: 2
Roosevelt County: 1
Sandoval County: 18
San Juan County: 22
San Miguel County: 1
Santa Fe County: 34
​​Socorro County: 2
Taos County: 9
Valencia County: 2

County totals are subject to change upon further investigation and determination of residency of individuals positive for COVID-19. At the end of this story is a breakdown of positive cases by each county.

As of today, there are 22 individuals hospitalized in New Mexico for COVID-19. This number may include individuals who tested positive for COVID-19 out of state but are currently hospitalized in New Mexico. This number does not include New Mexicans who tested positive for COVID-19 and may have been transferred to a hospital out of state.

As of today, there are 26 COVID-19 cases designated as having recovered by the New Mexico Department of Health.

The Department of Health has detected community spread and is investigating cases with no known exposure. The agency reports that given the infectious nature of the virus it is likely other residents are infected but yet to be tested or confirmed positive. To that end, all New Mexicans have been instructed to stay home except for outings absolutely necessary for health, safety and welfare. These additional restrictions have been enacted to aggressively minimize person-to-person contact and ensure spread is mitigated. All businesses except those deemed essential have been ordered to close. New Mexicans are strongly urged to limit travel to only what is necessary for health, safety and welfare.

The New Mexico Department of Health has active investigations into the positive patients, which includes contact-tracing and swabs of symptomatic individuals who have had contact with the positive cases.

Every New Mexican must work together to stem the spread of COVID-19. Stay home.

New Mexicans who report symptoms of COVID-19 infection, such as fever, cough, or shortness of breath, should call their health care provider or the NMDOH COVID-19 hotline immediately (1-855-600-3453).

While the state is gratified that COVID-19 testing is increasingly available, testing must be prioritized for persons with symptoms of COVID-19 infection – fever, cough, or shortness of breath. This is allergy season, and allergy symptoms such as sneezing or itchy eyes, nose or throat do not indicate a need for testing.​

New Mexicans who have non-health-related questions or concerns can also call 833-551-0518 or visit newmexico.gov, which is being updated regularly as a one-stop source for information for families, workers and others affected by and seeking more information about COVID-19.

The state Department of Health will update its dedicated COVID-19 webpage with additional tests as the state lab provides results.

MANDATORY CURFEW TO START MONDAY

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. – Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer were informed by the Navajo Department of Health and Navajo Area Indian Health Service, in coordination with the Navajo Epidemiology Center, that the number of positive tests for COVID-19 has reached a total of 115 for the Navajo Nation as of Saturday. As reported on Friday, there are two confirmed two deaths related to COVID-19.

The 115 cases include the following counties:

• Navajo County, AZ: 57
• Apache County, AZ: 18
• Coconino County, AZ: 19
• McKinley County, NM: 6
• San Juan County, NM: 12
• Cibola County, NM: 1
• San Juan County, UT: 2

Nez will host an online town hall meeting on March 29 at 1:00 pm. (DST) through Facebook and KTNN AM 660 to provide important updates on response efforts, number of cases, and supply needs. Under the advisement of health care and emergency experts, The president will also announce the implementation of a curfew from 8 pm to 5 am daily for the entire Navajo Nation that will go into effect on Monday morning.

“We’ve reached a point where our medical facilities and health care workers are in dire need of more Personal Protective Equipment, hospital beds, and other critical resources and it’s only going to increase if people continue to ignore orders to stay home as much as possible,” Nez said.

The Navajo Nation’s needs for personnel, protective wear, hospital beds, and other crucial resources and supplies at all health care facilities on the Navajo Nation continue to increase daily. President Nez and Vice President Lizer are working with members of Congress and state partners to prepare for the use of temporary hospital facilities when current hospitals reach capacity and are no longer able to house patients.

Navajo Nation needs "prayers and the cooperation of the public to fight this growing pandemic," Lizer emphasized

"Eventually, we will overcome, but at this rate it’s going to be a long and challenging road ahead," he said. "The more people choose to go out in public each day, the more challenging it’ll be for everyone. We all want this pandemic to end, but the only way we end it is by isolating ourselves as much as possible,”

Both president and vice president are also working with the Division of Economic Development to prepare and initiate added precautions at grocery stores, banks, and other businesses during the first of the month. More details are forthcoming.

A Public Health Emergency “Stay at Home Order” remains in effect requiring all residents of the Navajo Nation to remain home and isolated and all non-essential businesses to close to prevent the further spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

For more information including reports, helpful prevention tips, and more resources, please visit the Navajo Department of Health’s COVID-19 website at http://www.ndoh.navajo-nsn.gov/COVID-19. To contact the main Navajo Health Command Operations Center, please call ‪(928) 871-7014.