COVID hospitalizations on the rise

The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 in New Mexico has increased 89 percent in the past four weeks, according to the state’s Department of Health.

The state reported 64 COVID patients were in New Mexico hospitals on June 30. That number was at 121 on Tuesday, the highest single-day total since May 26 when 130 were hospitalized.

The rise in hospitalizations happened on the same day the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its guidance to recommend that even fully vaccinated individuals wear masks in public, indoor settings in parts of the country where there are "substantial" or "high" levels of transmission.

In Clovis, Plains Regional Medical Center officials reported four patients were hospitalized with COVID-19, including one in the hospital’s intensive care unit. The hospital has recorded two COVID-related deaths in the past two weeks.

Through Tuesday, Curry County had reported 106 new COVID cases in July, compared to 78 in June. Roosevelt County had reported 39 new cases in July, compared to 19 in June.

Health officials are reporting a national surge in virus cases can be attributed to the highly transmissible delta variant. The seven-day rolling average of new infections approached 52,000 on Tuesday, more than four times the level just three weeks ago.

Hospitals across the nation are reporting the unvaccinated are the most seriously ill.

Bloomberg News and the Albuquerque Journal contributed to this report.