COVID In MN: Positivity Rate Continues Climbing As MDH Reports 4,827 New Cases
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- With federal medical teams on the way to assist overloaded Minnesota hospitals, the state health department reported 4,827 new COVID-19 cases Thursday, along with 32 additional deaths.
One of the dead was a Carlton County resident in their early 20s.
The state's rolling seven-day average positivity rate is at 10.7%, above the high risk threshold. There are also a reported 73.2 daily new cases per 100,000 Minnesota residents, putting the state well above the line considered high risk, which is just 10 per 100,000.
The latest figures from the Minnesota Department of Health bring the state's cumulative number of people who have been infected to 856,524, and 9,125 deaths have been attributed to the virus. The state has seen 9,531 reinfections.
As of Wednesday, Minnesota's seven-day case rate was the worst in the nation, at 556.5 per 100,000 people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In Minnesota hospitals as of Wednesday, 333 intensive care beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients, as well as 1,048 non-ICU beds. The rate of new COVID hospitalizations per 100,000 residents is at 18.9, the highest it's been since December 2020.
As day-to-day life inches back to normal, nurses inside Minnesota hospitals say they're seeing a disconnect.
"Looks just like it did a year ago in December before we had the vaccine," North Memorial COVID ICU nurse Mary Turner said. "I don't know if people want to hear it anymore. The nurses at times are feeling discouraged on a floor like mine."
Of the state's 5 and older population, 68.5% have received at least one dose. The state has administered 7,468,829 vaccine doses, including 760,272 boosters. Earlier this week, health officials said they are prepared to soon lower booster restrictions to include all adults ages 18 and over.
