ST PAUL, Minn — Thursday, May 7
- Gov. Walz and MDH unveil "battle plan" to protect long-term care facilities
- MDH commissioner says MN close to reaching 20K daily test goal
- North Memorial begins drive-up testing
- New DHS web page has resources to help deal with COVID-19 stress, anxiety
2 p.m.
Gov. Tim Walz and state officials revealed a new five-point "battle plan" Thursday for protecting Minnesotans living in long-term care facilities.
The plan calls for:
- Expanding testing for residents and facility workers
- Providing on-site testing support and troubleshooting
- Providing personal protective equipment for facilities
- Ensuring adequate staffing levels
- Leveraging partnerships with state agencies, as well as local and regional public health organizations to reduce transmission and limit exposure
According to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), 15% of the state's confirmed COVID-19 cases have occurred in long-term care or assisted living facility; 25% of the state's confirmed cases involved exposure for staff or residents in a congregate living setting. MDH said 407 of the state's 508 recorded COVID-19 deaths occurred in cases at long-term care or assisted living facilities.
MDH commissioner Jan Malcolm said the virus is not hitting long-term care facilities equally, noting that only 1 in 5 long-term care facilities and 1 in 10 assisted living facilities have at least one confirmed COVID-19 case.
On testing, Malcolm said the department will issue new guidance on testing and screening at long-term care facilities. That guidance will include consistent "active screening" practices for staff and residents. Testing will be expanded to all symptomatic residents and staff; and in a major shift in state policy, facility-wide testing will be required when a case is confirmed or multiple people develop symptoms.
The state will also begin working with health systems to set up "strike teams" that can quickly conduct on-site testing at long-term care facilities.
Under the plan, the state will maintain and manage a cache of masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) for long-term facilities to use in an emergency when a facility uses up its own supplies and is not able to restock. The state will ensure that needed equipment is delivered to facilities dealing with outbreaks, and will provide to other facilities based on availability.
The plan calls for several strategies for staffing support at facilities facing outbreaks, which includes using COVID-19 federal funding to build a team of health care workers who can provide temporary staffing when needed. The state would also use databases to contact health care workers for on-call shifts, and use incentives "to encourage health care systems to provide crisis staffing to facilities," according to the plan.
Meeting those staffing needs could also include activation of the Minnesota National Guard, under the state's updated plan.
Gov. Walz noted that it's possible Minnesota will be one of the last states in the country to reach a peak in coronavirus cases, because of the state's approach to the crisis. He said it's possible Minnesota's peak could come at the same time that other states begin to see a second wave of illnesses.
"It will save lives because we pushed (the peak) out," Walz said. "This was the question very early of trying to strike that balance, it means the frustrations are longer."
Walz said he and other state officials are hoping to issue guidance soon on reopening small retail shops and resuming small family gatherings, sometime soon.
In addition of the primary topics of the briefing, Gov. Walz also commented on this weekend's upcoming fishing opener, noting there won't be a Governor's Opener this year due to the pandemic; however, he encouraged Minnesotans to continue to enjoy fishing opener weekend while doing so responsibly in light of the current situation by social distancing and staying closer to home.
11 a.m.
New numbers released by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) Thursday show the largest single day-increase in cases of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.
MDH says 786 people tested positive for the coronavirus, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the state to 9,365. Health care workers make up 1,205 of those cases. Between private and state labs, 4,189 tests were processed yesterday, bringing the total number of tests performed to 97,421.
Gov. Tim Walz and health officials have been transparent in their belief that the number of confirmed cases will be going up at far higher daily rate than earlier in the pandemic, simply because the state's ability and willingness to test more people are ramping up.
The death toll to COVID-19 now sits at 508, as 23 additional people died in the past day due to complications of the virus. Those age 70 and above make up 82% of the fatalities, with most of those deaths coming in long-term care facilities and congregate care settings. Those between the ages of 60 and 69 make up 12% of the fatalities.
At this time 435 people are being cared for in hospitals across Minnesota, with 182 of them experiences symptoms serious enough to require treatment in the ICU.
Hennepin County has recorded 2,962 cases of COVID-19, by far the most in the state. Stearns County is a growing concern for state health officials, having recorded 1,161 cases, and Nobles County reports 1,153, that number largely driven by an outbreak at the JBS pork processing facility.
The number of patients recovering is also growing, with 5,308 people who at one time tested positive no longer requiring isolation.
Wednesday May 6
2 p.m.
Minnesota Commissioner of Health Jan Malcolm said today is the kick off of National Nurses week and would like to acknowledge their work.
Infectious Disease Director Kris Ehresmann said they are seeing cases pop up in food processing plants.
Ehresmann then encouraged parents to stay in contact with their child's doctor to be sure they go to their well-child visits and keep up with immunizations and other health screenings.
In terms of PPE, Commissioner of Department of Administration Alice Robert-Davis said the prices of items are volatile but they have seen hospitals able to see stabilization and receive the equipment from their normal suppliers.
Robert-Davis says current usage rate of PPE is: 9,000 face shields a day, 37,000 gowns, 93,000 masks, and 11,000 N95 respirators each day.
Malcolm said it's possible that other states are only reporting skilled nursing facilities as long-term care facilities whereas Minnesota includes more facilities than just skilled nursing ones, which would explain why Minnesota has more deaths in that category.
11 a.m.
There are now 8,579 laboratory-confirmed coronavirus cases in Minnesota. That is a jump of 728 cases in one day.
Governor Tim Walz and health officials have cautioned Minnesotans not to get alarmed, as the ramp-up of testing across the state virtually guarantees that numbers will grow at a faster rate.
Of the total positive cases, 1,146 of them are in healthcare workers.
The state is nearing the 100,000 mark of tests completed with 93,232 as of May 6.
State officials say that 5,005 patients who were once positive no longer require isolation.
An additional 30 people died from coronavirus bringing the number of deaths to 485. According to officials, 391 of the deaths were people in long-term or assisted living facilities.
The total number of people that have been hospitalized due to the virus is 1,405. As of May 6, 443 are currently hospitalized, and 180 of them are in ICU.
Hennepin County has the most cases with 2,764, followed by Nobles County with 1,082 and Stearns with 975.
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The state of Minnesota has set up a hotline for general questions about coronavirus at 651-201-3920 or 1-800-657-3903, available 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.