Cooler but still well above normal this week

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Tracking cases in Minnesota

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The state Health Department delivered doses of sad and hopeful news Wednesday in the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Deaths rose by 19, bringing the total to 1,236 since the pandemic began. But the count of people currently hospitalized (427) and the number needing intensive care (193) continued to fall.

The number of daily intensive cases — a closely watched metric as officials try to manage the disease’s spread so it doesn’t overwhelm the care system — is the lowest it’s been in a month. 

Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said Wednesday the state would increasingly rely on the “good decisions” of individual Minnesotans to wear masks, keep their distance in public and take other measures to keep themselves and their neighbors safe as restrictions ease.

The newest numbers come as COVID-19 restrictions take a major step back Wednesday with Gov. Tim Walz letting 

 — including indoor bar and restaurant service at limited capacity.

While there has been a recent, positive trend in hospitalizations and ICU cases, health officials cautioned people not to be complacent.

Malcolm warned that the virus remains unpredictable and that Minnesotans should prepare for "many more months of the disease being present in our communities."

Malcolm and Kris Ehresmann, the state’s infectious disease director, said it’s possible the disease could surge again in the fall and winter.

Ehresmann noted that the state’s COVID-19 response this spring to minimize indoor contact in restaurants, bars and other gathering spaces, also effectively eliminated the typical influenza season but that the state was likely in the fall to face influenza and COVID-19 cycles together as people return to social spaces. 

“That will make it more challenging,” she said.

Asked about when state K-12 public schools would receive guidance on opening school buildings in the fall, Minnesota health officials said school leaders should still be preparing multiple scenarios to start the school year.

Ehresmann said her agency and the Education Department are in consultation about how the coronavirus could affect the next school year. It could be midsummer before districts learn if they’ll have to continue distance learning or can reopen their buildings.

“Part of the goal is to make sure that there are options available for the fall so that there is time to plan,” she said, “so that we can be nimble if we have to make adaptations given a change in how the virus behaves.

Massive protests raise fears of new virus outbreaks

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Many of the outbreaks outside the Twin Cities metro area are focused around meatpacking plants. Officials have intensified testing in those hot spots, uncovering more infections.

In southwestern Minnesota’s Nobles County, where an outbreak hit Worthington’s massive JBS pork plant, about 1 in 15 people have tested positive for COVID-19. In mid-April, there were just a handful of cases. 

By Wednesday, there were 1,599 confirmed cases, although the increases are coming at a much slower rate than earlier in the epidemic.

 with expanded hygiene and health monitoring measures.

, where COVID-19 cases tied to two packing plants — Pilgrim’s Pride poultry plant in Cold Spring and Jennie-O Turkey in Melrose — skyrocketed in May.

An undisclosed number of workers at both plants have tested positive for the virus. There were about 55 confirmed cases in Stearns County in early May. By Wednesday, confirmed cases were at 2,081 with 17 deaths.

Kandiyohi County in west-central Minnesota is also seeing cases continue to climb more than a month after officials with the Jennie-O turkey processing plant there said some employees had tested positive for the coronavirus. The county had confirmed three COVID-19 cases then.

On Wednesday, the Health Department reported 534 people have now tested positive in the county. 

While the counts in those counties are high relative to their population, officials say the growth in new cases in those areas appears to be stabilizing.

Mower County in southern Minnesota, another county with a large meatpacking presence, is becoming a hot spot. 

Mower County has jumped the past few weeks, reporting a total of 574 positive COVID-19 cases now with two deaths as of Wednesday. The 

Rochester, Minn., Post-Bulletin reported recently

 that two meat plants in Austin, Minn., are seeing COVID-19 cases rise rapidly.

Four COVID-19 testing sites open in Twin Cities

Four testing centers opened Tuesday in the Twin Cities to test people who were part of George Floyd protests, cleanup efforts or observing the protests for COVID-19. The centers are open for three successive Tuesdays and Wednesdays, from noon to 6 p.m.

The testing is free and available to anyone — with or without symptoms. Health officials are urging people who may have participated in protests, cleanup and recovery efforts, vigils, neighborhood defense meetings to be tested, and asking people to make appointments for the tests through

Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm on Wednesday said about 1,100 people were tested at those sites Tuesday. People who test negative will get an email or text within 72 hours, while people who test positive will get a phone call within 72 hours, she said, adding that more such testing opportunities would be coming.

Officials said that even if someone was in a protest 14 days ago, they should still consider being tested.

— Tim Nelson and Catharine Richert | MPR News

Restaurants, other businesses cautiously ready to let customers in:

 Restaurants and other businesses can open up to indoor service Wednesday for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic shut down much of the economy in March. Some say they’re keeping expectations modest, knowing many customers will be cautious about going out.

Long Prairie beef processor among latest swept by COVID-19, despite significant prevention

: The sharp rise in cases demonstrates how difficult it is to prevent the spread of a highly contagious disease amid the crowded quarters of a meatpacking plant — and in the wider community.

Managing COVID-19 is part of the new business reality for Thief River Falls' DigiKey

: The coronavirus has disrupted businesses large and small, for months — shutting down after outbreaks or state orders, and in many cases forcing major changes in how they operate.

As economy continues to reopen, Duluth moves to 'normalize' masks:

 The cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul are requiring people to wear masks in stores and other indoor spaces as Minnesota moves to reopen additional sectors of the economy this week. But Duluth is taking a different approach, trying to normalize the habit, rather than mandate it.

 Photographer Derek Montgomery talked to people around the city of Duluth about why they wear their COVID-19 face masks.

Data in these graphs are based off Minnesota Department of Health cumulative totals released at 11 a.m. daily. You can find more detailed statistics on COVID-19 at the 

The coronavirus is transmitted through respiratory droplets, coughs and sneezes, similar to the way the flu can spread.

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Minnesota and the Upper Midwest

How it compares with other diseases in 5 charts

Government and medical leaders are urging people to wash their hands frequently and well, refrain from touching their faces, cover their coughs, disinfect surfaces and avoid large crowds, all in an effort to curb the virus’ rapid spread.

Minnesota News

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The newest numbers come as COVID-19 restrictions take a major step back Wednesday with Gov. Tim Walz letting a host of businesses reopen — including indoor bar and restaurant service at limited capacity. 

June 10 update on COVID-19 in MN: 1,236 deaths; hospitalizations, ICU cases dip

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