ST PAUL, Minn. — Wednesday, Sept. 2
- MDH reports 761 new cases, but test numbers are high due to backlog
- HealthPartners seeks 1,500 volunteers for COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial
- Social gatherings like weddings, funerals; college return fueling case clusters across the state
- Bus companies share back-to-school plans for keeping kids safe from coronavirus
- There are 50 cases associated with Sturgis and there was one death.
Wednesday, Sept. 2
2 p.m.
There were 16,000 tests in a backlog, which came through Wednesday, MDH Commissioner Jan Malcolm said. Malcolm said tests from the backlog being reported today go back "many months,"
There are 50 cases associated with Sturgis and there was one death. There are situations of secondary spread who got infected by the people who attended Sturgis.
The rumor that children who test positive are being taken from their parents by Child Protective Services is false, MDH Infectious Disease Director Kris Ehresmann said. Ehresmann urges people to get their information from reliable sources.
Wednesday, Sept. 2
11 a.m.
Statistics shared by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) Wednesday show 761 new cases of COVID-19 across the state.
Those new cases are based on 27,487 tests processed in private and state labs. While that number seems quite high, MDH spokesperson Andrea Ahneman confirms that the total includes a backlog of nearly 17,000 tests, about 13,500 of them from Valley Medical. The backlogged tests and some that will be reported in the next few days are from Aug. 10 and earlier.
Ahneman says the other roughly 3,500 backlogged tests added today were from multiple labs, and were due to regular processes for getting labs on board with the MDH system, not a failure to report.
As of Wednesday 77,085 Minnesotans have tested positive for coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic.
Seven more people have died from COVID-19, bringing the state's total number of fatalities to 1,830. Of those deaths 1,345, or 73%, have occurred in assisted living or long-term settings, involving one of Minnesota's most vulnerable populations.
Currently 297 people are hospitalized with the virus, 135 of them requiring care in the ICU. MDH says 69.521 people who at one time tested positive for coronavirus have recovered to the point they no longer require isolation.
Those between the ages of 20 and 24, a highly social group that also includes college students, accounts for the state's largest group of cases with 10,244, followed by people 25 to 29 who make up 7,753 cases. People between 30 and 34 comprise 7,164 cases and seven deaths. The group accounting for the greatest number of fatalities is those between 85 and 89, who number 308 deaths but just 1,093 COVID-19 cases.
Hennepin County reports the most cases of any county in Minnesota with 23,372, and 883 deaths. Ramsey County registers 9,311 cases and 299 deaths, while Dakota County has 6,084 cases and 112 fatalities.
Cook County reports the fewest coronavirus cases with six, while Kittson County has recorded just eight.
Tuesday, Sept. 1
The number of Minnesotans hospitalized with COVID-19 is lower than it's been in two weeks, but officials with the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) are expressing concerns about how the virus is trending statewide.
Currently 294 people are being treated for coronavirus in Minnesota hospitals, with 136 of them requiring care in the ICU. Overall 6,520 people have been hospitalized since the onset of the pandemic.
MDH says 502 new cases of COVID-19 were diagnosed in the last 24-hour reporting period, based on the results of 9,158 tests performed in private labs. In all, 76,355 Minnesotans have tested positive for the virus.
During a Monday press briefing MDH Commissioner Jan Malcolm said health officials are seeing COVID-19 cases increase at a "faster rate" than earlier in the pandemic, and noted that federal health officials have noticed the increase in cases and outbreaks.
Six more people have died of the coronavirus, bringing Minnesota's fatalities to 1,823. Of that number 1,340, or 74% of the deaths occurred in long-term or assisted living settings.
MDH says 68,488 people who at one time tested positive for the virus have recovered to the point they no longer require isolation.
Those between the ages of 20 and 24 make up the largest group of Minnesota cases with 10,128 and one death. People between 25 and 29 account for 7,678 cases and three deaths, while people between 30 and 34 number 7,119 cases and seven deaths. The demographic between 85 and 89 comprises just 1,086 cases but 306 deaths.
Hennepin County has the largest number of COVID-19 cases with 23,209, registering 881 fatalities. Ramsey County reports 9,243 cases and 298 deaths, while Dakota County has 5,973 cases and 111 fatalities.
Cook County reports only six coronavirus cases, the lowest number in Minnesota.
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The state of Minnesota has set up a data portal online at mn.gov/covid19.
