The U.S. has reported more than 36.5 million confirmed COVID-19 cases as of August 17, 2021. More than 610,000 Americans have died of COVID-19 — the highest death toll of any country.

The virus has spread throughout the country in a way that has been difficult to predict, surging in one region, then showing signs of improvement, and then reappearing in other regions. Though local outbreaks may ebb and flow, the current surge in cases has been felt nearly nationwide, leading to new travel restrictions and business closures around the country.

Nationwide, there were an average of 37.9 daily new coronavirus cases per 100,000 Americans in the week ending August 17, 2021. Cumulatively, the U.S. has reported 11,170.9 cases per 100,000 Americans, and 188.5 deaths per 100,000 Americans.

The extent of the spread of the novel coronavirus continues to vary considerably from state to state, and even from county to county. Even as the number of daily new cases is flattening or even declining in some parts of the country, new cases are surging at a growing rate in others.

The coronavirus has spread to different parts of the country in different stages throughout the pandemic. In the spring, the worst hit states were in the Northeast, as New York City became the epicenter of the nation’s crisis. The virus spread to states throughout the Sun Belt in the summer, and hit states in the Midwest and West during the fall. By November 2020, nearly every state was categorized as a COVID-19 hot spot, according to definitions based on new cases per capita from the nonprofit health organization Kaiser Family Foundation.

In New Mexico, there were an average of 27.7 daily new coronavirus cases per 100,000 residents in the week ending August 17, 2021. The New Mexico case growth rate ranks as the 25th highest of all 50 states.

While the nation’s largest counties were hit hardest in the early months of the pandemic, nearly every county has suffered from the coronavirus. Outbreaks can occur quickly in places where large numbers of people tend to congregate, leaving counties with colleges, correctional facilities, and nursing homes particularly at risk.

In Lea County, there were an average of 107.8 new confirmed cases per day per 100,000 residents in the week ending August 17, 2021 — the highest rate of any county in New Mexico. Since the pandemic began, the county has reported 9,817 confirmed cases, or 13,999.1 cases per 100,000.

There have been 205 deaths, or 292.3 deaths per 100,000 residents.

To determine the county in each state with the highest rate of daily cases of the virus, 24/7 Wall St. compiled and reviewed data from state and local health departments. We ranked counties according to the average new number of cases per 100,000 residents per day during the week ending August 17, 2021. Population data used to adjust case and death totals came from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2018 American Community Survey and are five-year estimates.

These are all the counties in New Mexico where COVID-19 is slowing (and where it’s still getting worse).

No.	County	Population	New daily cases per 100,000	Total cases	Total deaths	Cases per 100,000	Deaths per 100,000
1	Lea County	70,126	107.8	9,817	205	13,999.1	292.3
2	Hidalgo County	4,371	100.9	478	9	10,935.7	205.9
3	Eddy County	57,437	95.0	8,060	152	14,032.8	264.6
4	De Baca County	2,060	77.3	199	2	9,660.2	97.1
5	Quay County	8,373	77.3	628	11	7,500.3	131.4
6	Lincoln County	19,482	69.0	2,016	20	10,348.0	102.7
7	Chaves County	65,459	48.9	9,665	173	14,765.0	264.3
8	Roosevelt County	19,117	38.4	2,195	61	11,481.9	319.1
9	Curry County	50,199	36.1	5,712	87	11,378.7	173.3
10	Otero County	65,745	28.1	4,435	88	6,745.8	133.9
11	Catron County	3,539	27.1	109	6	3,080.0	169.5
12	McKinley County	72,849	26.1	12,797	483	17,566.5	663.0
13	Luna County	24,264	25.9	3,506	92	14,449.4	379.2
14	Valencia County	75,956	24.5	7,370	124	9,703.0	163.3
15	San Miguel County	28,034	23.1	1,558	17	5,557.5	60.6
16	Bernalillo County	677,692	22.1	62,682	987	9,249.3	145.6
17	San Juan County	127,455	20.2	16,356	504	12,832.8	395.4
18	Sandoval County	140,769	20.0	12,999	244	9,234.3	173.3
19	Guadalupe County	4,382	19.6	490	15	11,182.1	342.3
20	Do�a Ana County	215,338	18.3	25,995	504	12,071.7	234.1
21	Rio Arriba County	39,307	18.3	3,990	81	10,150.9	206.1
22	Colfax County	12,353	17.0	846	46	6,848.5	372.4
23	Torrance County	15,595	16.5	947	16	6,072.5	102.6
24	Sierra County	11,135	15.0	813	52	7,301.3	467.0
25	Santa Fe County	148,917	14.2	11,162	153	7,495.5	102.7
26	Socorro County	17,000	12.8	1,382	61	8,129.4	358.8
27	Los Alamos County	18,356	12.6	582	7	3,170.6	38.1
28	Taos County	32,888	10.8	1,837	56	5,585.6	170.3
29	Union County	4,175	10.8	267	10	6,395.2	239.5
30	Mora County	4,563	10.7	186	8	4,076.3	175.3
31	Grant County	28,061	10.6	1,828	43	6,514.4	153.2
32	Cibola County	26,978	9.0	2,977	128	11,034.9	474.5
33	Harding County	459	0.0	13	1	2,832.2	217.9

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