Copyright © 2022 Albuquerque Journal
COVID-19 confirmed cases are continuing to trend in the right direction statewide.
The New Mexico Department of Health reported 3,420 new cases for the week ending Aug. 29. That was a 10% decline from the number confirmed the week before and a 45% drop from 6,300 new cases the state reported for the week ending Aug. 1, according to weekly epidemiology reports.
On Wednesday, the state reported 15 new COVID deaths, bringing the toll to 8,447 since the start of the pandemic.
A total of 98 people with COVID were admitted to hospitals throughout the state during the week ending Aug. 29, according to the reports, which was about the same as the week before, according to the reports.
Health officials have, however, said that the confirmed cases could be an undercount because they don’t include people who test positive using at-home tests.
The government-run website, covid.gov, where people can order those free tests, is being suspended Friday.
“Ordering through this program will be suspended on Friday, September 2, because Congress has not provided additional funding to replenish the nation’s stockpile of tests,” says a banner on the website.
Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized the use of an updated booster shot made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. The new booster shot targets the omicron subvariants that currently make up the lion’s share of COVID cases.
The Pfizer shot is approved for anyone 12 and older, and the Moderna shot can be given to anyone 18 and older. The single-shot boosters are approved for use at least two months after a primary or booster vaccination, according to the FDA’s website.
