Key metrics used to track the spread of the coronavirus in Minnesota moved in a positive direction Sunday.
The Minnesota Department of Health’s Sunday update contained two days of data due to the Christmas holiday delay. But the numbers were not so much different from recent one-day reports.
Sunday’s two-day update showed 2,534 new cases out of more than 88,000 test results – compared to 2,170 cases of about 53,000 tests in Saturday’s one-day update.
On average over the past week, the test positivity rate in Minnesota has now dropped to about 4.7 percent – below the 5 percent threshold that government officials said is worrying.
The last time the weekly average positivity rate was below 5 percent was in the first week of October.
The average number of new COVID cases and hospital admissions each day in Minnesota is at its lowest level in nearly two months.
But amid the encouraging news, the death toll has continued to rise. State health officials on Sunday reported another 40 deaths from COVID-19 – including 27 residents of long-term care facilities.
The total death toll in Pandemic in Minnesota is now 5,147 – including 3,332 residents of long-term care facilities, or about 65 percent of the total toll.
The latest two-day mortality rate is well below Minnesota’s recent average of more than 50 COVID deaths per day – but it was not clear whether the reporting affected the holiday.
Here is the stream of Minnesota COVID-19 statistics; Sunday’s update contains two days’ data:
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5,107 deaths (40 reported Sunday)
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409,061 positive cases (2,534 new reported Sunday), with 388,919 discounts on isolation (95 percent)
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5.5 million tests, 2.9 million people tested (about 51 percent of the population)
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4.7 percent positive test score of seven days (officials find 5 percent regarding)
The number of active, confirmed cases in Minnesota dropped to less than 15,000 on Sunday – from more than 50,000 to a peak in November, and the lowest since the end of October.
Although they applaud the better image of case charges and hospitalizations, public health leaders still warned that conditions could change dramatically if people do not stay awake during the annual holiday.
They call on people to wear masks in outdoor gatherings, to distance themselves socially and to take other measures to limit the spread of COVID-19.
“We are still in a situation where there are just a lot of viruses spreading in the community,” Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said on Wednesday.
Malcolm praised Minnesotans for obeying guidance on public gatherings and social distance and said vaccinations would help even more. But she warned that does not mean Minnesota can lower its guard.
The state must still take precautions to help the vaccine do its job, Malcolm said. “It’s important to not only protect yourself and your immediate family, but also to protect your neighbors or people in your community that you do not even know.”
Cases are spread across age groups
People in their twenties still form the age group with the largest number of confirmed cases in the state – more than 78,000 since the pandemic began, including more than 41,000 among people aged 20 to 24.
The number of high school teens confirmed with the disease has also grown, with more than 31,000 cases since the age of 15 to 19 since the pandemic.
Although less likely to experience the worst effects of the disease and eventually be hospitalized, experts are concerned that young people will spread it to grandparents and other vulnerable populations.
This is of particular concern because humans may have the coronavirus and can spread COVID-19 if they have no symptoms.
New cases fall across Minnesota
Central and western Minnesota have caused much of the increase in new cases over the past two months, while the provinces of Hennepin and Ramsey have shown some of the slowest growth in the state.
Businesses are still falling across the country, but still have not fallen to their levels ahead of the state’s COVID-19 boom that took place in November and early December. In addition to testing the volume, case positivity is declining in almost every state in Minnesota. Even the state-populated provinces of Hennepin and Ramsey had a positive percentage of less than 5 percent in the past week.
After an increase in confirmed cases during much of November and early December, all regions of the state saw new case numbers decline.
Popular places keep popping up in rural provinces relative to their population.
Cases are still the heaviest among coloreds
In Minnesota and across the country, COVID-19 hit communities of color excessively hard in both cases and deaths. This is especially true for Minnesotans of Spanish descent for much of the pandemic.
Although the number of new cases eased a few weeks ago, the data show that people of color are still hit the hardest.
The mistrust in the government, coupled with deep-rooted health and economic inequalities, has hampered efforts to promote testing among color communities, officials say, especially among unauthorized immigrants who fear their personal information could be used to deport them.
Similar trends were seen among Minnesota natives. In October, the number of indigenous population jumped in proportion to the population.
Developments around the state
Walz extends the cut for himself and his chief of staff
Gov. Tim Walz said Wednesday he is adding six months to a 10% cut he and his chief of staff are taking during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In April, Walz imposed a pay cut for himself and agency commissioners to save the state money and show solidarity with people struggling due to restrictions he has imposed. It will expire next week.
A new executive order puts the ten percent pay cut into effect for just two people: Walz and Chief of Staff Chris Schmitter. Walz earns $ 127,000 a year; Schmitter earned about $ 140,000. The salary of the cabinet level will return to the previous levels.
Walz said agency chiefs are working longer to manage the pandemic. Minnesota’s budget situation has also improved.
Walz also signed an executive order that could help out-of-state pharmacists administer the COVID-19 vaccine due to staffing systems among pharmacists in Minnesota.
– Brian Bakst | MPR News
Top headlines
Sauk Center offers COVID-19 hospital workers support: Last month, the CentraCare health system in central Minnesota announced that it would move its hospital in Sauk Center to virtually exclusively patients with COVID-19. It was a big change for health workers and residents of the close town.
MSU Mankato addresses hunger on campus with free groceries, a food pantry in spring: As COVID-19 continues to exacerbate the needs of Minnesota people, including access to food and hunger, these problems can also be found on college campuses. At Minnesota State University, Mankato, the college intervenes to educate its students.
Minnesotans plan for expected federal relief: Most Minnesotans expect more COVID-19 aid money from the federal government, although President Donald Trump is taking the opportunity to finally establish the stimulus package of Congress Republicans and Democrats. The president says direct payments should be more than three times the $ 600 that the House and Senate came up with.
COVID-19 in Minnesota
The data in these graphs are based on the cumulative totals of Minnesota’s Department of Health released daily at 11 p.m. You can find more information about COVID-19 at Website of the Department of Health.
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