Latest on COVID-19 in MN: ‘A race between the variants and the vaccine’

3 things to know

• 24.7 percent of Minnesotans with at least one vaccine dose; big jump in vaccine supply expected soon

• Outbreaks in Carver County, Mankato area and eastern iron range cause concern

• Active cases and hospitalizations increase

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Updated: 11:20 am

State health leaders are again urging people to be vigilant against COVID-19, saying they are increasingly concerned about the weakening of Minnesotans as the weather warms and the vaccination picture becomes clearer.

Officials warn that the highly contagious British tribe, now with a foothold in Minnesota, has the potential to spread through the state. There are now more than 300 confirmed cases of the variant.

In the southwestern Twin Cities suburbs, in southern Minnesota around Mankato and in northern Minnesota, at the eastern tip of the Iron Range, new places are bubbling.

Here’s Minnesota’s current COVID-19 statistics:

• 6 777 deaths (6 new)

• 504 273 positive cases; 97 percent discount on insulation

• 24.7 percent of Minnesotans with at least 1 vaccine dose

• 78.1 percent of Minnesotans 65 and older with at least 1 vaccination

While the state has made progress with vaccinations, especially among those aged 65 and over, it has not yet vaccinated enough people to bring about a herd immunity, and there is a danger of a new upsurge.

“We are in a race between the variant and the vaccine, and the decisions we will all make in the next few weeks will have a lot to say about the outcome of this race,” said Kris Ehresmann, the state’s director infectious diseases, told reporters Friday. . “We have to be careful for a while.”

Vaccination rate improves, but still flat

Saturday’s vaccination data showed continued promise after a few days of faint data earlier in the week.

The health department reported 61,260 more vaccinations, more than reported the previous Saturday. The seven-day trend is now above 41,000 shots daily again. The trend has been mostly downward recently, but the prediction of vaccines is expected to increase soon.

However, case counts and hospitalizations are slowly increasing again and new hotspots are bubbling up, reinforcing the belief that Minnesota is now in a race to vaccinate people fast enough to avoid a new COVID-19 boom in the country.

More than 816,000 people – about 14.7 percent of the state’s population – have completed their vaccinations, while more than 1.37 million – 24.7 percent – have received at least one dose, including more than 78 percent of the people of 65 years and older.

Minnesota expects to receive 350,000 doses in the week of March 29, Governor Tim Walz said Friday. From April, officials also expect the drug to deliver 100,000 doses a week of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which requires only one dose.

Active affairs on; Carver Co., hot spots for Iron Range

Minnesota’s COVID-19 numbers show disease conditions are relatively stable compared to the late fall boom, but there are warning lights flashing.

There has been a noticeable increase in the number of known, active cases recently – this is the number of people who have yet to isolate themselves after a confirmed COVID-19 case. Saturday’s data shows 10,410 active cases, indicating nine consecutive days with an active count of more than 8,000, unseen since the end of January. It is also the first time since the end of January that active business has risen above 10,000.

Although the current score is still low compared to late November and early December, the increase is noteworthy as concerns about the increase in the British COVID-19 strain. Ehresmann said her agency suspects the British variant is driving the current upswing.

Hospitalizations are still low compared to the late-fall boom, but it also counts: 316 people have been admitted to hospital since Wednesday, while 74 are in intensive care.

Six recently reported deaths brought Minnesota’s combined toll to 6,777. Among the deceased, about 63 percent lived in long-term care or assistance facilities; most had underlying health problems.

The state has so far recorded 504,273 confirmed or probable cases so far in the pandemic, including 1,400 that were posted Friday. About 97 percent of Minnesotans known to be infected with COVID-19 in the pandemic have recovered to the point that they no longer need to be isolated.

Public health leaders are still overseeing an outbreak in the Carver County area linked to British tension and youth sport.

The state recommends that young people across the state be tested for COVID-19 every two weeks, with student athletes tested weekly; officials are also asking that everyone in Carver County be tested.

The Department of Health on Thursday also warned of ‘dramatic increases’ in COVID-19 cases in the eastern part of Minnesota’s Iron Range centered around the city of Aurora. It did not say how many cases, but officials will open a free test site in Aurora on Monday and Tuesday.

Ehresmann also mentions a hot spot now in and around Mankato.

As of Friday, there were 317 cases of the British variant confirmed across the country, she added. Twelve people nationwide were admitted to hospital due to the tension; two are dead.

Cases spread across age groups, regions

People in their twenties still make up the age group with the largest number of confirmed cases in the state – more than 94,000 since the pandemic began, including more than 49,000 among those aged 20 to 24.

The number of high school teens confirmed with the disease has also grown, with nearly 40,000 total cases among those aged 15 to 19 years since the pandemic began.

As children increasingly return to school buildings and sports, public health officials in Minnesota are urging Minnesota families with children to be tested for COVID-19 every two weeks until the end of the school year.

Although young people are less likely to experience the worst effects of the disease and are eventually admitted to hospital, experts are concerned that the youth will unknowingly spread it to older family members and members of other vulnerable populations.

People can have the coronavirus and spread COVID-19 if they have no symptoms.

Regionally, all parts of Minnesota are in significantly better condition than at the end of November and early December. In some areas, improvements are seen in some cases.

While officials are watching the recent increase in active cases, overall trends have improved to the point where Walz announced last week a return of many of the remaining pandemic restrictions in the state. “Normality is at hand,” the governor said.

But it’s not quite there yet. Walz said Wednesday that he, Lieutenant General Peggy Flanagan and Jan Malcolm, health commissioner, are in quarantine due to possible exposure to COVID-19.

Cases among coloreds

In Minnesota and across the state, 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 is still lower than the end of November, in early December, the data show that Latino people are still being hit hard.

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.

Walz acknowledged that mistrust by color communities was a problem during the pandemic. Officials presented some details about vaccinations, by race and ethnicity. The state updates the data weekly.

Malcolm said the state is committed to doing more to expand access to vaccines for people of color, including getting more doses at community pharmacies, working with local groups and setting up mobile vaccination clinics.

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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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Latest developments

North Dakota will extend the vaccination pool to the general public this month

North Dakota health officials say coronavirus vaccinations will be available to the general public from March 29.

According to the state, some regions of the state may enter the phase 2 vaccination phase even sooner. Healthcare workers, long-term caregivers and staff and older adults are the first to be vaccinated.

The state Department of Health said nearly 195,000 people in North Dakota received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine as of Friday. 119 new cases of coronavirus have been reported and one new death.

– Associated Press

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