ST PAUL, Minn. — Sunday, Aug. 9
2 p.m.
The Wisconsin's Department of Health Services reported 621 new cases Sunday, as the total number of confirmed cases rose to 60,554.
Health officials also announced two new deaths Sunday, raising the total number of fatalities statewide to 998.
Wisconsin health officials say a total of 5,000 people have been hospitalized from the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic, roughly 8.3% of the total number of people who have been diagnosed with the virus.
Of the confirmed cases in Wisconsin, 25% involve people between the ages of 20 to 29, 17% are between 30 and 39, 14% are between 40 and 49, and 14% are 50 to 59. An estimated 10% are between 10 and 19, and 9% are between 60 and 69.
As of Sunday, Milwaukee County reported the largest number of cases with 21,062 and 456 deaths. Dane County reports 4,536 cases and 39 deaths, while Brown County has registered 4,264 cases and 54 deaths.
A more detailed breakdown of cases by county can be found on the DHS website.
11 a.m.
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) announced Sunday that the number of positive coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in Minnesota has increased by 806 bringing the cumulative total to 60,898.
Nine more people also died, bringing the death total to 1,657.
Health officials say 1,249 deaths have taken place in long-term care or assisted living facilities.
Of the nine new deaths, five occurred at private residences and four in long-term care.
MDH also said Sunday that the total number of tests taken is at 1,159,139.
Minnesota hospitals are currently treating 312 patients for the coronavirus, with 148 of them dealing with symptoms serious enough to require care in the ICU.
MDH reports that 53,568 people once diagnosed with the virus have recovered enough that they no longer require isolation.
Of those who have tested positive, people between the ages of 20-29 account for the most cases with 14,253 cases and four deaths, and those ages 30-39 follow with 11,163 cases and 14 deaths. Those between 80 and 89 years old account for the highest number of fatalities in one age group at 555, out of 1,969 confirmed cases.
In terms of likely exposure to the coronavirus, MDH says 13,756 cases were the result of community transmission with no known contact with an infected person, and 12,094 had known contact with a person who has a confirmed case.
A total of 8,740 cases involved exposure in a congregate living setting, 801 were in a corrections setting, and 247 were in a homeless shelter. MDH data shows 5,611 were linked to an outbreak outside of congregate living or health care.
MDH says 4,661 cases were linked to travel. Health care workers or patients account for 4,522 of diagnosed COVID-19 cases.
Hennepin County has the most cases in the state at 19,271, with 835 deaths, followed by Ramsey County with 7,572 cases and 265 deaths. Dakota County reports 4,414 cases and 106 deaths.
Saturday, Aug. 8
2 p.m.
Wisconsin's Department of Health Services reported 1,165 new cases Saturday, as the total number of confirmed cases rose to 59,933.
Health officials announced 6 additional deaths Saturday, raising the total number of fatalities statewide to 996. The total number of fatalities is approximately 1.7% of those testing positive for the virus.
Wisconsin health officials say a total of 4,980 people have been hospitalized from the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic, roughly 8.3% of the total number of people who have been diagnosed with the virus.
Of the confirmed cases in Wisconsin, 25% involve people between the ages of 20 to 29, 17% are between 30 and 39, 14% are between 40 and 49, and 14% are 50 to 59. An estimated 10% are between 10 and 19, and 9% are between 60 and 69.
As of Thursday, Milwaukee County reported the largest number of cases with 20,920 and 456 deaths. Dane County reports 4,492 cases and 38 deaths, while Brown County has registered 4,240 cases and 54 deaths.
A more detailed breakdown of cases by county can be found on the DHS website.
11 a.m.
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) reported 924 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases Saturday, bringing the total number of Minnesotans who have tested positive for the virus since the pandemic began to 60,101.
MDH says another eight Minnesotans have died of complications from the virus during the past day, bringing the total number of fatalities in the state to 1,648.
Minnesota hospitals are currently treating 309 patients for the coronavirus, with 154 of them dealing with symptoms serious enough to require care in the ICU.
MDH reports that 52,768 people once diagnosed with the virus have recovered enough that they no longer require isolation.
Of those who have tested positive, people between the ages of 20-29 account for the most cases with 14,107 cases and four deaths, and those ages 30-39 follow with 11,019 cases and 14 deaths. Those between 80 and 89 years old account for the highest number of fatalities in one age group at 550, out of 1,950 confirmed cases.
In terms of likely exposure to the coronavirus, MDH says 13,756 cases were the result of community transmission with no known contact with an infected person, and 12,094 had known contact with a person who has a confirmed case.
A total of 8,685 cases involved exposure in a congregate living setting, 796 were in a corrections setting, and 240 were in a homeless shelter. MDH data shows 5,611 were linked to an outbreak outside of congregate living or health care.
MDH says 4,588 cases were linked to travel. Health care workers or patients account for 4,460 of diagnosed COVID-19 cases.
Hennepin County has the most cases in the state at 19,057, with 831 deaths, followed by Ramsey County with 7,444 cases and 265 deaths. Dakota County reports 4,334 cases and 104 deaths.
Friday, Aug. 7
- Gov. Tim Walz issues proclamation for third special session
- Health officials urge anyone who participates in Sturgis rally to self-quarantine when they return
- Winona County health officials report recent outbreak in Lewiston
- MDH reports 556 new cases, four additional deaths
- Health officials report 300 people currently hospitalized
- Nearly 16,000 tests were conducted in private, state labs in the past day
4 p.m.
Gov. Tim Walz has issued a proclamation for a third special session, a necessary step should he decide to extend the emergency peacetime order as the coronavirus pandemic persists.
For the third time since May, Walz has called for a special session, most recently in July where he extended the emergency peacetime order.
Also during the most recent special session lawmakers agreed on a police reform bill that was ultimately signed by Walz, which eliminated the use of choke hold restraints, called for more training and provided more transparency during police responses.
2 p.m.
Minnesota Department of Heath Commissioner Jan Malcolm acknowledged that the decrease in positive cases from Thursday's numbers are encouraging, but did say the state has seen similar fluctuations in the past.
Malcolm addressed the concerns about this weekend's start to the Sturgis motorcycle rally, saying not all people who have contracted COVID-19 have shown symptoms, and how easily it can spread indoors, especially in crowded restaurants and bars.
"Nobody likes to tell people they shouldn't go out and have fun and live their lives, but the hard truth is we are in a historic pandemic," Malcolm said. "We have big problems in Minnesota and the United States with community transmission, and the idea of bringing together tens and hundreds of thousands of people from all around the country in close contact for days at a time does raise significant concerns from a public health perspective."
Malcolm added that people who do elect to participate in the rally, be aware of their surroundings and not expose themselves to settings where high transmission is possible, including indoor settings where people choose not to wear masks. In South Dakota, masks are not required at indoor restaurants and bars.
"We're asking, again, any Minnesotans who do go to Sturgis, voluntarily isolate for 14 days when they come back," Malcolm said. "This is especially important if you have a job that puts you in close contact with high risk groups."
When asked about the impacts of attending Sturgis as compared to the demonstrations that occurred in late May and early June following the death of George Floyd, Malcolm said a major difference is the greater degree of community transmission.
"In late spring, we certainly were seeing cases at that point, but the significant difference was that most of the transmission was coming from known sources of outbreak – in congregate care settings or workplace settings that, yes, indeed, did spread into the community, but the point of origin was a little easier to identify," Malcolm said. "We're just in a really different spot now with a much higher degree of generalized community risk than we were before."
The greater risk comes from more social gatherings throughout the community that weren't in place in late spring, and people were practicing stricter social distancing guidelines. Now that restrictions have lessened, fewer people are taking appropriate precautions, therefore the risk for community transmission is higher, according to health officials.
"I think there's a certain amount of COVID fatigue going on where people may not be as vigilant as they had been in previous months," said Karen Martin, MDH Infectious Disease Epidemiologist Prevention and Control.
MDH State Epidemiologist Dr. Ruth Lynfield focused on the growing numbers of confirmed cases in workers at long-term care facility and assisted living. Lynfield said that since the pandemic began, a majority of the cases have been to residents, but since mid-June, majority of the positive cases have been to staff members.
"No matter how hard everyone works to prevent the spread of COVID among long-term care residents and facilities, there still is a connection to the community, and workers live in the community," Lynfield said. "When there are high levels of virus circulating, there is only so much that we can do from a system standpoint to prevent workers from being exposed in the community, getting infected, and unknowingly bringing them into the facilities where they work."
Data over the past few months show an increasing trend in the number of large gatherings being reported, and have impacted the rise in confirmed cases throughout the community, according to Lynfield.
"Since we've rolled out the five-point plan, we've made encouraging progress in building up the support for facilities and in making them more resilient," Lynfield said. "Most of the nursing homes and assisted living facilities have no current identified COVID cases, but that is fragile, and we are very concerned that the progress that we have made can be at risk, and can even be lost, if we let up on our precautions. The bottom line is that we need everyone in Minnesota to be doing their part to be limiting transmission."
1 p.m.
Winona County Health and Human Services have reported a recent outbreak of COVID-19 in Lewiston, Minnesota through contact tracing at a handful of athletic camps.
Officials are asking anyone that attended these camps to be tested and quarantine for 14 days. They're requesting the quarantine even if the test results are negative.
The camps include:
- Monday, July 27 -- morning football camp and evening basketball camp at Lewiston-Altura High School.
- Tuesday, July 28 -- morning football camp and evening basketball camp at Lewiston-Altura High School.
- Wednesday, July 29 -- 7-on-7 football at Paul Giel Filed in Winona.
- Thursday, July 30 -- Evening basketball camp at Lewiston-Altura High School.
Health officials are also asking anyone who attended the Lewiston Farmer's Market on Wednesday, July 29 to be tested and quarantine, despite saying this event has a potentially lower risk of transmission, along with anyone who participated in a pick-up basketball game at Crossings Center in Lewiston on either Sunday, July 26 and Thursday, July 30.
11 a.m.
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) reported 556 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24-hour reporting period, bringing the total to 59,185. Those new cases were based on the results of 15,924 tests performed in private and state labs in the past day.
MDH also reported four additional deaths, including one that occurred at a long-term care or assisted living facility. The total number of fatalities across the state is 1,640. Of those deaths, 1,241 -- or 75.6% -- have occurred in a long-term care or assisted living facility.
Health officials say 300 people are currently being treated for coronavirus symptoms in Minnesota hospitals, with 155 requiring treatment in the ICU. Rising hospitalization numbers have been another concern for state health officials, and the daily number of patients has been at 300 or higher for the past week.
MDH says 51,940 people who at one time tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered to the point they no longer require isolation.
Those between the ages of 20 and 29, described by MDH officials as the state's most social group, make up the largest number of coronavirus cases with 13,924 and four deaths. People between 30 and 39 comprise 10,865 cases and 14 deaths, while those between 80 and 89 account for 1,932 of the cases but 549 deaths, or 33.5% of Minnesota's total.
Hennepin County has the most COVID-19 activity of any county in the state with 18,774 cases and 828 deaths. Ramsey County reports 7,307 cases and 263 deaths, while Dakota County reports 4,250 cases and 104 deaths.
Thursday, Aug. 6
11 a.m.
Concerns expressed by top state health officials about trends with COVID-19 in recent days are backed up new numbers released Thursday, reflecting the second-highest single day total of reported cases since the pandemic began.
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) says 867 new cases of coronavirus were confirmed in the past 24-hour reporting period, bringing the total to 56,840. Those new cases were based on the results of 14,940 tests performed in private and state labs in the past day.
The previous daily high in new cases was 871 on July 26.
Seven additional Minnesotans have died from complications of the virus, bringing the total number of fatalities since the onset of COVID-19 to 1,636. Of those deaths 1,240, or 76%, have occurred in long-term care or assisted living facilities.
Currently 319 people are being treated for symptoms of the coronavirus in Minnesota hospitals, with 153 requiring treatment in the ICU. Rising hospitalization numbers have been another concern for state health officials, and the daily number of patients has been above 300 for the past week.
MDH says 51,604 people who at one time tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered to the point they no longer require isolation.
Those between the ages of 20 and 29, described by MDH officials as the state's most social group, make up the largest number of coronavirus cases with 13,814 and 4 deaths. People between 30 and 39 comprise 10,783 cases and 14 deaths, while those between 80 and 89 account for just 1,922 of the cases but 547 deaths. That's 33% of Minnesota's total.
Hennepin County has the most COVID-19 activity of any county in the state with 18,641 cases and 828 deaths. Ramsey County reports 7,233 cases and 261 deaths, while Dakota County reports 4,188 cases and 104 deaths.
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The state of Minnesota has set up a data portal online at mn.gov/covid19.
