A man walk shops in the alcohol department at a grocery store Albuquerque, NM on June 26, 2022. (Photo by Adria Malcolm for New Mexico In Depth)
Alcohol-related deaths in New Mexico declined for the second consecutive year, according to data released by the New Mexico Department of Health on Friday. The state has posted a 17.3% decline in the age-adjusted rate of 102.3 deaths per 100,000 in 2021 to 84.5 deaths per 100,000 in 2023, with McKinley County showing the largest decrease: 38% between 2021 and 2023.
Statewide, NMDOH reported 1,896 alcohol-related deaths, a decrease from 2,067 in 2022 and 2021’s peak number of 2,274, at which time the state’s rate was twice the national average. In 2023, males in New Mexico had an age-adjusted rate of alcohol-related death rate two and a half times higher than females, which declined between 2021 and 2023 16.1% and 20.6%, respectively…