COVID-19 hasn’t gone away; rather, it is continuing to mutate, leading to multiple waves of infection.

While the virus has proven resilient, when it comes to continuing to be a threat, one positive is that the changes have resulted in a less-deadly form of the novel coronavirus.

“Bad news and good news, but exactly what we’d expect,” Dr. David Scrase, health secretary of New Mexico, said during a press conference covered by KRQE. “The virus actually wants to live with us so it evolves over time to more easily infect people but it reduces the number of people who are killed.” 

At the time of his conference, the state has reported 575,279 recorded positive cases and 176 current hospitalizations. More than 8,000 New Mexicans have died due to COVID-19 complications. 

Scrase noted that while cases are going up, hospitalizations and death rates remain low.

The dominant variant current is the BA.5 variant of Omicron. This version of COVID-19 might have a spread rate that could be 18 times higher than the original COVID strain. That will make it more infectious than measles.

Another concern is that the variant has already shown resistance to some treatments, and the health care industry isn't sure how well the vaccine works against it. 

“One test positive, one symptom, one risk factor equals treatment,” Scrase said. “And we’re doing well. We’re cruising from 2,000 to about 2,500 treatments a week. Currently, only 61% of adults under 65 in New Mexico have gotten a booster shot.”