The New Mexico Department of Health has renewed a public health order for expanded syphilis testing, as the state looks to decrease cases of mothers passing the infection on to babies during pregnancy.
The order directs healthcare providers to keep testing for the sexually transmitted infection in all adults ages 18 to 50, with more stringent testing recommendations for pregnant people.
The primary goal of the order is to curb the state’s high rate of congenital syphilis, a form of the disease passed from mother to baby during pregnancy that can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, prematurity and other serious health complications. New Mexico in 2024 saw 366 cases of congenital syphilis per 100,000 live births — more than three times the national rate of 109.6 cases per 100,000 births, according to the state Health Department.
Unlike other sexually transmitted infections, syphilis is curable with proper treatment. Congenital syphilis is preventable, too, if the mother is tested and treated appropriately at least 30 days before the baby is born.
“Every case of congenital syphilis we think of as a public health failure or missed opportunity — because it is absolutely preventable. … The best way to prevent congenital syphilis is for sexually active adults to get tested,” said Andrew Gans, communicable disease bureau chief at the Department of Health.
The renewed public health order comes as syphilis rates in New Mexico — and across the U.S. — remain high. Between 2014 and 2024, syphilis rates quadrupled in New Mexico. Nationwide, syphilis rates increased by 13% between 2015 and 2024, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“About 1 in 5 people in the United States have [a sexually transmitted infection], affecting millions of Americans and thousands of babies each year. We need to continue our prevention efforts wholeheartedly at federal, state and local levels,” Dr. Bradley Stoner, director of the CDC’s Division of STD Prevention, said in a statement.
Congenital syphilis rates increased, too. Gans said New Mexico had “very, very few” cases of the disease until 2018, when the state saw 10 such cases. By 2023, that number had risen to 91, state Health Department data shows, including 16 fetal deaths and one infant death.
Now, though, New Mexico is starting to see progress. Syphilis rates in the state peaked in 2023 at more than double the national average. They’ve since declined, dropping by about 30% between 2023 and 2024 and by about 18% between 2024 and 2025.
“We are finally seeing a downturn — but I’d like to see us where we were 10 years ago, which was barely a handful of cases of congenital syphilis in the state every year,” Gans said.
The state Health Department issued the public health order in January 2020 as the surge in cases began. It was aimed at congenital syphilis in particular, encouraging healthcare providers to test women three times during pregnancy: during the first trimester, the third trimester and at delivery.
The latest version of the order also encourages testing of all pregnant women in jails, prisons and juvenile detention centers, as well as all pregnant women who go to urgent care or the emergency room without receiving prior prenatal care.
In addition to the public health order, Gans said, the state Health Department has maintained provider education initiatives and expanded its disease prevention staff, which investigates each case of syphilis to refer people to testing and treatment.
“The mix of all our interventions seems to be working, but [rates of syphilis are] still high — so pedal to the metal is still the strategy. Keep doing what’s working,” he said.
Margaret O’Hara reports on issues affecting healthy communities in New Mexico. Her work is funded by a grant from Anchorum Health Foundation. Anchorum will not have any role in editorial decisions. The New Mexican and its Public Service Journalism Fund retain full editorial control. Philanthropically funded stories by The New Mexican are made available to all readers without a paywall.
