By Jesse Jones
At recent Corrales Village Council meetings, Deputy Fire Chief Tanya Lattin warned New Mexico is facing its worst flu season since 2009, mirroring national trends. A measles outbreak was declared in Lea County, raising concerns among health officials.
Lattin urged Corraleños to take precautions against both highly contagious illnesses. Mayor James Fahey, a medical doctor, said in his Mayor’s Message for Feb. 14 that vaccinations are the first defense to help prevent serious illness and death.
“I would recommend anyone that didn’t get the flu shot should get it now because we are peaking still,” Lattin said. “We thought we peaked, we didn’t — we’re still peaking.”
According to Lattin, the New Mexico Department of Health has reported nine measles cases in Lea County, including the most recent case linked to New Mexico Junior College near Hobbs.
After confirming three unrelated cases, the state met the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention outbreak criteria on Feb. 14. In neighboring Texas’s Gaines County, cases jumped from two to 57 in three weeks, with 90 reported around the region, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas officials said 16 patients have been hospitalized. Five of the 90 cases were vaccinated, while the rest were either unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status.
However, the NMDOH reported no evidence linking the measles outbreak in Texas to the one in Lea County.
“One person infected [with measles] usually infects 12 to 18 people,” Lattin said. “However, those people need to be non-vaccinated, under-vaccinated or have lost vaccination immunity, because when you complete a series of two vaccines for measles, it is about 97% effective.”
Lattin said measles is highly contagious and spreads through respiratory droplets, primarily via coughs and sneezes. It is transmissible for about eight days — four days before symptoms, which include high fever, cough, runny nose and rash, and four days after the rash appears. The virus can remain airborne for up to two hours.
“It mixes beautifully with respiratory illness,” she said.
Lattin said a doctor can check their immunity with a simple blood test if people don’t know if they were vaccinated.
According to New Mexico Political Report, measles outbreaks become more costly as they spread. Containing a 2018 outbreak in Washington state with 72 cases cost about $2.3 million, plus $76,000 in medical expenses and an estimated $1 million in economic losses from illness, quarantines and caregiving.
Flu COVID-19 update
“This is the worst flu season since 2009,” Lattin said. “The United States has had 68 pediatric deaths from this flu season.”
According to Lattin, Sandoval County’s medical data from Feb. 16, 11.48% of patients discharged from medical care had a respiratory virus. Of those, 8.12% had influenza, 2.09% had Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) and 1.02% had COVID-19. These figures include all patients discharged, not just those admitted.
From Dec. 15 to Feb. 15, the highest hospitalization rate was among those 75 and older at 25.7%. The second highest was adults 18 to 49 at 23%, followed by ages 50 to 64 at 18.89% and ages 65 to 74 at 18.3%.
She said flu shots are more common among young children and older adults.
“If you haven’t gotten a flu shot yet, now is the time,” she said. “Cases are still peaking,” Lattin said. “It takes about 14 days to take effect.”
New Mexico has one of the highest flu rates in the country, but COVID-19 isn’t the main concern right now, Lattin said. While COVID is still circulating, flu is the bigger driver of illness.
However, she advised people 65 and older or those with weakened immune systems who received the 2024–25 COVID-19 vaccine to check their vaccination dates. They qualify for a second if it has been six months since their first dose.
The US Department of Agriculture confirmed New Mexico’s first H5N1 bird flu case of the year on Feb. 12 in a Northern pintail duck harvested in Socorro County. The last confirmed cases were in dairy cows in August.
According to Source NM, state veterinary and agriculture officials will begin testing milk for a strain of avian influenza spreading among dairy cows, raising concerns about potential transmission to humans.
According to Lattin, if people find a sick or injured wild bird, they should not handle it without gloves and, preferably, a mask, as the cause of illness is unknown. Those with backyard animals, especially chickens and ducks, should also avoid handling animals that suddenly die or get sick without wearing gloves and a mask. Lattin added that people can contact the state veterinary lab to have animals tested.
She said all animals can contract bird flu, but house cats are particularly vulnerable. She urged keeping cats indoors and away from wild birds to protect them. Cats can contract the virus by eating infected birds or drinking raw milk contaminated with the flu.
According to Source NM, seven of the 85 domestic cats infected with avian influenza since 2022 were from New Mexico, all identified in 2024, based on U.S. Department of Agriculture data.