COVID In Minnesota: 17 Deaths, 788 Cases Reported
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - Health officials on Wednesday reported 788 additional cases of COVID-19 and 17 deaths. More than 1.4 million vaccine doses have been administered in the state.
The new update from the Minnesota Department of Health brings the state's total cases to 486,434, with 6,507 cumulative fatalities. Since last March, the majority of the deaths - 63% - have taken place in long-term care or assisted living facilities.
However, as of Monday, more than 54% of seniors 65 and older have received their first shot of the two-dose series. Roughly 8.7% of the state's population has completed the vaccine series.
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Currently only those 65 and older, health care workers, child care workers, and educators are eligible in the state to be vaccinated. Last week, Gov. Tim Walz unveiled details of the long-term vaccination plan for Minnesota, estimating that the general public would be inoculated by the summer. However, that plan did not take into consideration the now-FDA authorized Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine, and health officials have said that it would speed up the timeline.
Meanwhile, the seven-day average positivity rate for Minnesota reached 3.5% as of Feb. 22, the lowest the number has been since the end of June. The hospitalization and new case rate per 100,000 residents have also reached lows not seen since late summer. However the community spread, or percentage of cases with no known exposure, reached 46%, the highest it has ever been.
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As of Tuesday afternoon, there were 243 people in Minnesota hospitals with the virus, of which 57 were in the ICU. A total of 25,863 Minnesotans have required hospitalization since the pandemic began.
In the past 24 hours, the state has processed more than 20,000 COVID-19 tests.
