Thread by @MarkBoslough

@GovMLG @NMDOH September begins with a remarkable tale of two states. One state (New Mexico) has strong leadership and a science-guided, risk-conservative heath policy. The other state (South Dakota) has laissez faire leadership, a science-denying governor, & health policy that neglects risk.

@GovMLG @NMDOH Which state is doing better? Four weeks ago today, South Dakota was still doing relatively well despite the hands-off approach to regulation of meat packing plants that had been the primary source of COVID-19 outbreak in the state.

@GovMLG @NMDOH New Mexico's outbreaks had been dominated by prisons, detention centers, Native American communities, and senior care facilities. On Aug. 4, SD was ranked 15th out of 56 in terms of weekly total of new cases (about 70 per 100,000).

@GovMLG @NMDOH NM was 27th, with about 100 per 100,000).
On Aug. 4, the NM Supreme Court ruled in favor of Governor Lujan-Grisham, allowing the state to impose hefty fines on businesses that defy strict public health orders.

@GovMLG @NMDOH In stark contrast Fox News reported on Aug. 5 that ND Gov. Kristi Noem said SD would be proud to host the annual Sturgis rally. Gov. Noem dismissed concerns about the infectious disease, saying that science-guided heath orders "restrict freedoms" & are "how we lose this country".

@GovMLG @NMDOH We can see how these policies worked out by looking at the current graph of the same data. SD's new weekly confirmed case rate has increased from ~70 to 254 per 100,000. SD has gone from 15th to 56th out of 56. NM's new weekly rate has decreased from ~100 to 42 per 100,000.

@GovMLG @NMDOH NM has gone from 27th to 12th best out of 56.
Unfortunately what happens in South Dakota does not stay in SD. Case tracers in 8 states have linked COVID-19 cases to the Sturgis rally, & a Minnesota epidemiologist predicts the event will fuel a nationwide COVID-19 increase.