MN COVID-19 Breaking News: Are Vaccinations Outweighing Variants?

3 things to know

• Over 1.6 million with at least one dose; about 1 million fully vaccinated

• 7-day vaccination trend exceeds 50,000 shots per day, an all-time high

• Intensive care needs, active cases at highest level since January

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The state’s vaccination rate is steadily on the rise after stabilizing for several weeks. But active cases of COVID-19 are also on the rise, and intensive care needs are at their highest for more than two months.

This is Minnesota current COVID-19 statistics:

• 6,848 deaths (12 new)

• 519,529 positive cases; 96% reduction on isolation

• More than 1.6 million people with at least 1 dose; about 1 million fully vaccinated

• 81 percent of Minnesotans 65 and older with at least one dose of vaccine

The Health Department reported about 48,000 new vaccinations on Wednesday, pushing the seven-day trend to nearly 51,000 injections per day – the highest since vaccinations began in late December.

Over one million Minnesotans are completely inoculated while over 1.6 million have received at least one dose, including about 81 percent of residents aged 65 and over.

Officials remain concerned about the increase in the number of cases linked to the UK variant COVID-19 and youth sports. They have confirmed more than 500 cases of the British strain in recent weeks and believe half of the state’s new cases could be linked to this variant.

Data from Wednesday also shows the state’s positive test rate trending for a second day above 5% – a warning sign of a possible increase.

The good news is that many of the state’s most at-risk residents, including the elderly, have already received at least one dose and Minnesota expects its federal vaccine shipments to increase from April. .

Officials, however, have described the current situation as a race against time to vaccinate before the COVID-19 variants can gain a firmer footing in the state.

Intensive care case in place; regional hot spots concerning

Warning lights flash around data on Minnesota’s COVID-19 disease.

The number of known active cases has trended upward in recent weeks, with 13,286 active cases as of Wednesday’s report – marking 13 consecutive days with an active count above 10,000, a stretch not seen since January.

While still low compared to late November and early December, the upward trend is notable given concerns over the rise of the UK strain of COVID-19, which health officials say is behind of the current recovery.

Hospitalizations are low compared to the surge at the end of last year, but those numbers have risen slightly. The latest Department of Health data showed 411 people with COVID-19 in Minnesota hospitals; 102 required intensive care – the greatest need for intensive care and hospitalizations since the end of January.

Twelve deaths reported Wednesday brought the total number of deaths from a pandemic in Minnesota to 6,848. Of those who died, about 62% were living in long-term care or assisted living facilities; most had underlying health problems.

The state has recorded a total of 519,529 confirmed or probable cases so far in the pandemic, including 1,660 reported on Wednesday. About 96% of Minnesotans known to be infected with COVID-19 in the pandemic have recovered to the point where they no longer need to be isolated.

Regionally, all parts of Minnesota are in better shape than they were in late November and early December.

The latest figures, however, show cases are on the rise in all age groups except the oldest, and in nearly all parts of the state.

Public health officials continue to monitor the clusters in the southwestern metropolitan area of ​​the Twin Cities – especially Carver and Scott counties – as well as the Mankato and Eastern Ranges region, centered around the city of Aurora. There was also a recent outbreak in Ely, northeast of Aurora.

Cases distributed across age groups

People in their 20s are still the age group with the most confirmed cases in the state – more than 97,000 since the start of the pandemic, including more than 51,000 among those aged 20 to 24.

The number of high school age youth confirmed with the disease has also increased, with more than 41,000 total cases among those aged 15 to 19 since the start of the pandemic.

With children increasingly returning to school buildings and sports, Minnesota public health officials are urging Minnesota families with children to get tested every two weeks for COVID-19 until the end of the year. ‘school year.

Although young people are less likely to feel the worst effects of the disease and end up in hospital, experts fear it will unknowingly spread to older parents and members of other vulnerable populations. People with coronavirus can spread it when they don’t have symptoms.

Workload among people of color

In Minnesota and across the country, COVID-19 has disproportionately hit communities of color in both cases and deaths. This has been especially true for Hispanic Minnesotans during much of the pandemic.

Even though the number of new cases continues to follow well below their highs in late November, early December, data shows Latinos continue to be hit hard.

Distrust of the government, as well as deep-rooted health and economic disparities, have hampered efforts to step up testing among communities of color, officials say, especially among unauthorized immigrants who fear their information. personal data are not used to expel them.

Officials have acknowledged that mistrust of communities of color has been a problem during the pandemic. They offered immunization data disaggregated by race and ethnicity, which they update regularly.

Jan Malcolm, the state’s health commissioner, said the state is committed to doing more to expand access to vaccines for people of color, including getting more doses to community pharmacies, in s ” associating with local groups and deploying mobile vaccination clinics.

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COVID-19 in Minnesota

The data in these charts is based on cumulative totals from the Minnesota Department of Health released at 11 a.m. daily. You can find more detailed statistics on COVID-19 at Department of Health website.

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Latest developments

MN health officials: vaccinated assisted living residents can dine together again

The Minnesota Department of Health has clarified guidelines for assisted living facilities around meals and activities.

The health department said fully immunized assisted living residents can dine together and participate in activities within 6 feet, although they should continue to wear masks where appropriate.

The new guidelines come as cases of COVID-19 in assisted living centers have plummeted and vaccinations among residents have increased. People are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their first dose of Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine or their second dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

The new guidelines do not affect nursing homes, which must follow guidelines set by the federal government.

– Peter Cox | MPR News

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Main titles

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