Latest on COVID-19 in MN: Surge receding; hospital needs, new cases fall
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3 things to know:
594 hospitalized; 90 in ICU; hospitalizations falling quickly
New case counts trending at lowest point since August
COVID levels in Twin Cities wastewater lowest since July
Minnesota’s newest COVID-19 numbers offer more evidence of a pandemic surge in retreat, with fewer than 600 patients in the hospital now and new daily cases trending at a six-month low.
The metrics haven’t yet hit their summer bottoms but are rapidly moving in the right direction. The Minnesota Health Department reported fewer than 1,000 new cases on Friday, the lowest daily count since early August. There seven-day trend of new cases paints a similar picture.
Overall, there are about 9,800 active, confirmed COVID-19 cases in Minnesota. That’s down dramatically from mid-January, when active cases topped 67,000. The active count has stayed below 10,000 for three consecutive days, the first time that’s happened since August.
Hospitalizations are also falling rapidly — 594 people are currently in the hospital with COVID, with 90 needing an intensive care bed.
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Last Friday, state data showed 801 COVID hospitalizations with 126 ICU patients.
Hospitals across the state had been stretched to the breaking point at the start of the year as COVID cases and other rising health care needs grew rapidly.
Conditions are improving, though. Central Minnesota’s CentraCare health system this week loosened its COVID restrictions for hospital visitors. On Thursday, St. Paul and Minneapolis dropped their indoor masking orders.
Health officials continue to plead for vigilance against the disease, including masking in indoor public spaces, as the numbers are still somewhat high. In late June, Minnesota appeared to be through the worst of the pandemic.
The most recent map from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows all but six Minnesota counties with a high rate of viral transmission. Spread has moderated somewhat in Jackson, Rock and Brown counties in the southwest, Kittson and Red Lake in the northwest, and Cook County in the northeast.
Most metrics, though, paint a bright picture of the current situation. An especially good sign: The Metropolitan Council’s latest batch of Twin Cities wastewater data showed COVID concentrations remaining at July levels, near a low point before the omicron mutation began whacking Minnesota.
The council Friday noted that its analysts are keeping watch on a new omicron strain recently found in the wastewater that’s making up about 5 percent of the total found.
The state’s positive test rate has been moving steadily downward, with sample data showing positivity falling significantly closer to the 5 percent threshold of concern for state health officials. With the delays in data reporting, it’s possible the state’s back below that level already.
Fifteen newly reported deaths put the state's death toll at 12,081. Deaths typically follow a surge in cases and hospitalizations. In past COVID-19 waves, it’s been the last of the key metrics to improve. Death rates have been falling in recent weeks.
Vaccinations have put Minnesota in a better position now than during its fall 2020 and spring 2021 spikes: 78 percent of state residents age 12 and older have received at least one vaccination shot, with nearly 74 percent now completely vaccinated.
Officials say roughly 70 percent of Minnesota’s total population is now vaccinated with at least one shot, with about two-thirds completely vaccinated.
The struggle continues to get first shots into more Minnesotans, especially in central Minnesota.
