Enchantment State News

Kathleen Raskob, an Albuquerque resident, was one of the first thousands of New Mexico residents to take an at-home COVID-19 test. 

"They make it very, very easy for anyone to do," Raskob, executive director of a nonprofit education group, told Las Cruces Sun News. 

The at-home tests are becoming a critical component of the state's plan to boost the number of people getting tested for the coronavirus. New Mexico officials said getting tested is the key to isolating those with the virus. 

The at-home tests, which come from Vault Medical Services, started with a few issues, but a Department of Health spokesman said they hadn't heard of any issues after fixing the first ones. 

Others who spoke with Las Cruces Sun News reported no problems with the test. 

Since the tests have been available, approximately 8,700 New Mexico residents have ordered or taken the tests. 

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's administration is trying to get testing to 20,000 a day. Right now the state averages 13,900 tests taken each day. 

Dr. Jason Mitchell, chief medical officer at Presbyterian Healthcare Services, said the at-home steps will help expand testing. 

"In a pandemic like this, everything we do matters. There's not one magic bullet, unfortunately," Mitchell told Las Cruces Sun News. 

The state also has incentives to help increase coronavirus testing, one of which is allowing indoor dining for any county that has a positivity rate of 5% or less. 

Jim Walton, department of health spokesman, said while the number of tests are significant, they'd like to see more testing of all types to try and move the counties from red to green.

Raskob said she was happy the at-home test wasn't a nasal swab. She said the test also arrived the day after she had ordered it. 

"It's easy, and it's not like having something stuck up your nose," Raskob told Las Cruces Sun News.