COVID-19: Coverage of the pandemic from MPR News

As America’s COVID-19 death toll surges, racial health disparities remain persistent. Two physicians spoke about structural issues that exacerbate racial disparities as well as solutions for closing the gaps.

Gov. Tim Walz announced Wednesday he is extending some of the restrictions on businesses and social gathering that went into effect ahead of Thanksgiving. Other restrictions will ease or be lifted. Here’s what you need to know.

In St. Cloud’s Somali American community, there's deep distrust around vaccinations that predates the COVID-19 pandemic, and questions already are swirling. Some local health officials and community leaders worry that might prevent people from getting the vaccine.

Gov. Tim Walz is giving elementary schools across the state the green light to reopen next month if they adopt a number of strategies to contain the spread of the coronavirus. It’s a shift from previous policy, which required districts to rely on county-level data about the level of virus transmission in their communities to guide their reopening plans.