COVID-19 identified as 3rd leading cause of death in 2020 

Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
Published: 21 January 2022 21 January 2022

Powerhouse twins of vaccination and boosters derail alarming trend

SANTA FE: The New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) has recently identified COVID-19 as the third leading cause of death for New Mexicans in 2020, outpaced only by fatalities attributed to cancer and heart disease. This finding echoes the national trend announced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) earlier this week, which attributed an overall drop in life expectancy by nearly two years to COVID-19, the largest single-year decline since World War II.

In 2020, there were 2,847 deaths reported in New Mexico where COVID-19 was the leading cause, with record-breaking hospitalizations compounding the toll on exhausted staff throughout the state tasked with administering critical care amidst a shortage of resources.

The devastation ran deepest for racial and ethnic minorities, whose numbers of COVID-19-related severe illness and death were significantly higher.

The age-adjusted death rate for COVID-19 among American Indian or Alaska Natives in New Mexico was 9 times higher than the rate for Whites (457.6 per 100,000 vs. 49.9 per 100,000). The second-highest group at risk were Hispanics - who had an age-adjusted death rate that was 2.4 higher (120.9 per 100,000) compared to Whites. 

Despite the surging Omicron variant, death rates associated with COVID-19 have plummeted, thanks to statewide vaccination efforts that have resulted in more than 90% of New Mexicans having received at least one shot. 

Staying up to date on vaccination and boosters continues to be our most effective tool to prevent severe illness and death from COVID-19, along with social distancing, proper mask wearing, and following updated isolation and quarantine protocols. 

The COVID-19 vaccine is free, does not require identification nor insurance, and is among the safest vaccines in history. Book yours today at vaccinenm.org.

To query all death data from 2020 in NM, please visit our data query site:

https://ibis.health.state.nm.us/query/selection/mort/_MortSelection.html  

Content on the Beat

WARNING: All articles and photos with a byline or photo credit are copyrighted to the author or photographer. You may not use any information found within the articles without asking permission AND giving attribution to the source. Photos can be requested and may incur a nominal fee for use personally or commercially.

Disclaimer: If you find errors in articles not written by the Beat team but sent to us from other content providers, please contact the writer, not the Beat. For example, obituaries are always provided by the funeral home or a family member. We can fix errors, but please give details on where the error is so we can find it. News releases from government and non-profit entities are posted generally without change, except for legal notices, which incur a small charge.

NOTE: If an article does not have a byline, it was written by someone not affiliated with the Beat and then sent to the Beat for posting.

Images: We have received complaints about large images blocking parts of other articles. If you encounter this problem, click on the title of the article you want to read and it will take you to that article's page, which shows only that article without any intruders. 

New Columnists: The Beat continues to bring you new columnists. And check out the old faithfuls who continue to provide content.

Newsletter: If you opt in to the Join GCB Three Times Weekly Updates option above this to the right, you will be subscribed to email notifications with links to recently posted articles.

Submitting to the Beat

Those new to providing news releases to the Beat are asked to please check out submission guidelines at https://www.grantcountybeat.com/about/submissions. They are for your information to make life easier on the readers, as well as for the editor.

Advertising: Don't forget to tell advertisers that you saw their ads on the Beat.

Classifieds: We have changed Classifieds to a simpler option. Check periodically to see if any new ones have popped up. Send your information to editor@grantcountybeat.com and we will post it as soon as we can. Instructions and prices are on the page.

Editor's Notes

It has come to this editor's attention that people are sending information to the Grant County Beat Facebook page. Please be aware that the editor does not regularly monitor the page. If you have items you want to send to the editor, please send them to editor@grantcountybeat.com. Thanks!

Here for YOU: Consider the Beat your DAILY newspaper for up-to-date information about Grant County. It's at your fingertips! One Click to Local News. Thanks for your support for and your readership of Grant County's online news source—www.grantcountybeat.com

Feel free to notify editor@grantcountybeat.com if you notice any technical problems on the site. Your convenience is my desire for the Beat.  The Beat totally appreciates its readers and subscribers!  

Compliance: Because you are an esteemed member of The Grant County Beat readership, be assured that we at the Beat continue to do everything we can to be in full compliance with GDPR and pertinent US law, so that the information you have chosen to give to us cannot be compromised.