Democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham officially started her second term as New Mexico governor on New Year's Day with promises of "launching the state into the future" by building on the work her administration has done over the past four years.
Patrick Allen, director of the Oregon Health Authority through the COVID-19 pandemic, is leaving the state to head up New Mexico's state health department.
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) Oregon's top health official will be taking the reins of New Mexico's Health Department as the state builds a new veterans home and grapples with the enduring hardships of COVID-19 and the toll of alcoholism, drug-overdose deaths and gun violence.