ST PAUL, Minn. — Saturday Sept. 12
2 p.m.
Wisconsin's Department of Health Services reported 1,353 new cases Saturday, marking the fourth day in a week the total number of confirmed cases eclipsed 1,300. The total number of confirmed cases statewide is now at 87,603 since the pandemic started.
Health officials announced 12 new deaths on Saturday, bringing the total number of fatalities statewide to 1,209. The total number of fatalities is approximately 1.4% of those testing positive for the virus.
Wisconsin health officials say a total of 6,309 people have been hospitalized from the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic, about 7.2% 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, 16% are between 30 and 39, 14% are between 40 and 49, and 14% are 50 to 59. An estimated 11% are between 10 and 19, and 9% are between 60 and 69.
As of Saturday, Milwaukee County reported the largest number of cases with 25,440 and 513 deaths. Dane County has reported 7,389 cases and 41 deaths, Brown County has reported 6,366 and 58 deaths, and Waukesha County has reported 6,053 cases and 85 deaths.
A more detailed breakdown of cases by county can be found on the DHS website.
11 a.m.
Minnesota heath officials reported 929 positive COVID-19 tests and nine additional deaths on Saturday.
The newly reported positive cases bring the statewide to 83,588. Health officials said 9,077 health care workers have tested positive for the virus since the pandemic began.
More than 76,600 people were marked as no longer needing isolation.
Minnesota’s death toll from the coronavirus was 1,906 on Saturday. Officials report that 1,389 of deaths have been among residents of long-term care or assisted living facilities.
A total of 6,899 people have required hospitalization. Of those, 247 remain in those facilities, with 140 in intensive care.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
Friday, Sept. 11
- 13 coronavirus deaths, second consecutive day of double-digit fatalities
- Lawmakers begin special session over Walz's emergency powers
- Hopes fading for coronavirus deal as Congress returns
- Hundreds gather at 'bikers for Trump rally' despite COVID-19 orders
3 p.m.
Gov. Tim Walz will keep his peacetime emergency powers for the COVID-19 pandemic for at least another month. In a legislative special session Friday, the GOP-led Minnesota Senate voted to end the emergency, but the DFL-led House did not follow suit.
11 a.m.
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is reporting a second consecutive day of COVID-19 deaths in double digits.
Numbers shared by the department on Friday said 13 Minnesotans have died from the virus in the last day, pushing the total of fatalities to 1,897. Of those deaths 1,382, or 73% of them have occurred in assisted living or long-term care settings.
MDH says an additional 484 people have tested positive for the virus in the last 24-hour reporting period. Those cases are based on 17,841 tests performed in private and state labs, a significant bump in testing volume over the three days, which are associated with a holiday weekend.
Currently 253 people are being treated in Minnesota hospitals for the coronavirus, 139 of them in ICU. In all, 6,863 people have been hospitalized with COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.
State health officials say 75,757 people who at one time tested positive for coronavirus have improved to the point they no longer require isolation.
Those between the ages of 20 and 24 continue to make up the largest group of COVID cases in Minnesota with 11,250 and a single death, followed by residents ages 25 to 29 with 8,220 cases and three fatalities. The demographic between ages 15 and 19 account for 5,593 cases but no deaths.
The group that accounts for the largest number of deaths in the state is people from the ages of 85 to 89, with 324 deaths in just 1,142 confirmed cases. Most of those deaths occurred in assisted living or long-term care facilities.
Hennepin County has the most coronavirus activity of any county in the state, with 24,398 cases and 901 deaths, with Ramsey County reporting 9,899 and 308 fatalities. Dakota County has registered 6,655 cases and 120 deaths.
Cook County has experienced the least amount of COVID-19 activity with just 6 cases.
Thursday, Sept. 10
2 p.m.
Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) Infectious Disease Director Kris Ehresmann said health officials have now traced 75 positive COVID-19 cases to a recent wedding in Lyon County in southwestern Minnesota. The cases have been reported in 14 counties, in people ranging in age from 10 to 84. One case connected to the wedding has been hospitalized. Ehresmann said this is one of the largest outbreaks connected to a large social event in Minnesota.
In a Thursday conference call with reporters, MDH officials also reiterated the department's official essential caregiver guidance, and how residents can benefit from visits by these specially-designated friends or family members. MDH Director of the Office of Health Facility Complaints Lindsey Krueger said a recent voluntary survey of long-term care facilities found 68% of the 380 facilities that responded said they have implemented essential caregiver guidance so far.
Of those who have not implemented the guidance, most cited the potential COVID risk of an essential caregiver entering a facility; however MDH officials say there have been no cases at long-term care facilities tied to any essential caregivers thus far.
Ehresmann noted the state has seen rising numbers of COVID-19 cases among health care workers at long-term care facilities, which she said was likely a result of increasing community spread.
Meanwhile, a couple of metro clinics are offering free drive-thru COVID-19 testing.
The testing is available Wednesdays and Sundays at Dakota Child and Family Clinic and Saturdays at Dakota County’s Northern Service Center.
Anyone with COVID-19 symptoms or anyone who has been around someone with symptoms should be tested.
11:45 a.m.
As the school year gets underway across the state, weekly school guidance data released by the Minnesota Department of Health shows increasing COVID-19 positivity rates in several Minnesota counties.
According to the data released Thursday, Waseca County now falls under the state's recommendation for full distance learning, after recording more than 50 coronavirus cases per 10,000 people in the latest data reporting period from Aug. 16 to 29. It's the first time in six weeks that any Minnesota county has risen to the highest level of recommended learning model restrictions.
Eight Minnesota counties now have case rates high enough to fall under the second-highest level of recommended guidance, for hybrid elementary learning and distance secondary learning, an increase of five counties over last week. Those counties include Blue Earth, Le Sueur, Lyon, Nobles, Sibley, Watonwan, Winona, and Yellow Medicine.
On the other end of the spectrum, 35 of Minnesota's counties have case rates low enough for the state to recommend full in-person learning.
State officials have emphasized that this case data alone does not automatically determine the learning plan for a particular county or school district, but is meant to be used in guidance in each district's decision-making process.
According to the state's Safe Learning Plan, the county case data leads to five recommended learning models:
- 0-9 cases per 10,000: In-person learning for all students
- 10-19 cases per 10,000: In-person learning for elementary students, hybrid learning for secondary students
- 20-29 cases per 10,000: Hybrid learning for all students
- 30-49 cases per 10,000: Hybrid learning for elementary students, distance learning for secondary students
- 50 or more cases per 10,000: Distance learning for all students
In the metro area, Hennepin, Ramsey, Anoka, Carver and Scott counties fall under recommendations for in-person instruction in elementary schools and hybrid instruction in secondary schools. Dakota, Washington, and Wright counties have case rates high enough for hybrid learning recommendations for all grade levels.
11 a.m.
Fifteen Minnesotans died from COVID-19 in the last day, according to new numbers released Thursday by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).
That single-day death toll is the highest since August 19, when MDH reported 17 fatalities from the virus. In total, 1,884 people in the state have died from coronavirus since the pandemic began.
MDH says an additional 389 people were diagnosed in the past 24-hour reporting period, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the state to 82,249. The new cases are based on 7,903 tests processed in private and state labs.
At this time 257 people are being treated for COVID-19 in Minnesota hospitals, with 138 of them requiring care in the ICU. State health officials say 75,425 people who once tested positive for the virus have improved to the point they no longer require isolation.
Those between the ages of 20 and 24 remain the largest group of Minnesota COVID-19 cases with 11,183 and a single death, followed by people 25 to 29 with 8,181 cases and three deaths. Minnesotans ages 15 to 19 have overtaken people 30 to 34 as the demographic with the third largest number of cases: MDH says 7,548 people in their mid-to-late teens have tested positive, but none have died.
Hennepin County has the most COVID-19 activity of any county in the state, with 24,389 cases and 896 deaths, followed by Ramsey County with 9,805 cases and 305 fatalities. Dakota County has documented 6,629 cases and 120 deaths.
Cook County in far northeastern Minnesota has seen the fewest coronavirus cases with just 6.
KARE 11’s coverage of the coronavirus is rooted in Facts, not Fear. Visit kare11.com/coronavirus for comprehensive coverage, find out what you need to know about the Midwest specifically, learn more about the symptoms, and see what businesses are open as the state slowly lifts restrictions. Have a question? Text it to us at 763-797-7215. And get the latest coronavirus updates sent right to your inbox every morning. Subscribe to the KARE 11 Sunrise newsletter here. Help local families in need: www.kare11.com/give11.
The state of Minnesota has set up a data portal online at mn.gov/covid19.