,MinnPost provides updates on coronavirus in Minnesota Sunday through Friday. The information is published following a press phone call with members of the Walz administration or after the release of daily COVID-19 figures by the Minnesota Department of Health.
Here are the latest updates from November 18, 2020:
242,043 cases; 3,010 deaths
A record 67 more Minnesotans have died of COVID-19, the Minnesota Department of Health said Wednesday, for a total of 3,010 as November continues to be an incredibly deadly month. The previous record, 56 deaths, was set on Nov. 11.
Of the people whose deaths were announced Wednesday, two were in their 50s, six were in their 60s, 11 were in their 70s, 28 were in their 80s, 18 were in their 90s and two were over 100 years old. Fifty-one of the 67 people whose deaths announced Wednesday were residents of long-term care facilities.
MDH also said Wednesday there have been 242,043 total cases of COVID-19 in Minnesota. That number is up 5,094 from the total announced on Tuesday and is based on 37,026 new tests. You can find the seven-day positive case average here.
Hospitalizations continue to rise as caseloads threaten to overwhelm hospital systems. The most recent data available show 355 Minnesotans are hospitalized in intensive care with COVID-19, up from 283 a week prior, and 1,351 are in the hospital with COVID-19 not in intensive care. You can find more information about Minnesota’s current ICU usage and capacity here.
More information on cases can be found here.
Walz to announce COVID-19 new restrictions at 6 p.m.
In a 6 p.m. live address (you can watch here), Gov. Tim Walz is expected to announce new restrictions on bars, restaurants, gyms, fitness centers, youth sports and social gatherings designed to stem the spread of COVID-19 in the state.
KSTP reported that dining and drinking establishments will be allowed to operate on a takeout and delivery-only basis. Gyms, fitness centers and entertainment businesses like theaters and bowling alleys will be ordered to close for four weeks, starting before midnight Friday. Takeout will be permitted. The closures are, for now, expected to last for four weeks.
Youth sports will be put on pause. (As of 5:15 p.m. this post has been updated to reflect guidance now released by the governor’s office).
MinnPost’s Walker Orenstein will have more information about what this means for you after the 6 p.m. address, so check back with MinnPost later tonight.
Today on MinnPost
- Asking yourself how long it’s been since this all started? Us too.
- As always, a look at the numbers on the MinnPost COVID-19 dashboard.
Around the web
- More Americans Now Willing to Get COVID-19 Vaccine, Gallup
- This headline, though: After Big Thanksgiving Dinners, Plan Small Christmas Funerals, Health Experts Warn, Mississippi Free Press
- Bill Gates worries about a ‘dysfunctional’ approach to Covid-19 vaccine distribution, Stat
MDH’s coronavirus website: https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/coronavirus/index.html
MDH’s phone line for COVID-19 questions, Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m: 651-297-1304
