April 30, 2020 SANTA FE – New Mexico state leadership on Thursday, April 30, announced the extension of the state’s emergency public health order through May 15 as the COVID-19 pandemic remains a grave risk to residents of all ages and in all communities across New Mexico.
…Despite continued spread, New Mexico as a state has begun to flatten the curve, purchasing much-needed time to ramp up our healthcare system. Because of that hard work, we are entering the “Preparation Phase” for gradual, safe re-openings. With that objective, the amended public health order relaxes several restrictions to begin relieving economic pressure.
…To that end, the amended order, authorized by Health Secretary Kathy Kunkel and effective at 8 a.m. Friday, May 1, maintains the directive that New Mexicans remain at home except for outings essential to health, safety and welfare…
A third public health order allows medical facilities to gradually resume non-essential but medically necessary procedures (including ambulatory and inpatient surgery) based on extensive guidelines from the Department of Health. The guidelines are designed to prevent a shortage of personal protective equipment and to safeguard the health of patients and healthcare workers.
***NM Guidelines for Medical Practices and Offices***
***NM Guidelines for Resumption of Surgery***
… the governor and state health officials outlined potential additional relaxations…are dependent upon increasingly positive trends in COVID-19 illness and transmission data as determined by the state’s “gating criteria.”
Those criteria include:
1. A mitigated spread of the virus as reflected in the effective rate of transmission, to be measured by the state Medical Advisory Team;
2. Adequate and stable testing resources, to be measured by the Department of Health;
3. Effective contact-tracing plans and resources, to be measured by epidemiologists at the Department of Health;
4. Health care systems operating below staffed capacity for beds, ICU availability and ventilators, and sufficient personal protective equipment for health care workers and first responders to be measured by the Department of Health and Medical Advisory Team.
…Weekly modeling from the Medical Advisory Team will be regularly posted moving forward on the COVID-specific microsite, cv.nmhealth.org.