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 February 19, 2021:
477,287 cases; 6,412 deaths
Eight more Minnesotans have died of COVID-19, the Minnesota Department of Health said Friday, for a total of 6,412.
Of the people whose deaths were announced Friday, five were in their 80s, one was in their 70s and two were in their 60s. Two of the 8 people whose deaths announced Friday were residents of long-term care facilities.
MDH also said Friday there have been 477,287 total cases of COVID-19 in Minnesota. That number is up 995 from the total announced on Thursday and is based on 45,367 new tests. The most recent seven-day positivity average, which lags by a week, is 3.7 percent, below the 5 percent “caution” threshold. You can find the seven-day positive case average here.
As of Wednesday, the most recent day of data available, 728,081 people, or about 13.1 percent of the population, had received at least one of two COVID-19 vaccine doses. 286,543 people have received both doses.
The most recent data available show 59 Minnesotans are hospitalized in intensive care with COVID-19, and 223 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.
Today on MinnPost
- Senate Republicans — and four DFLers — vote to strip Walz of power over schools amid frustration over emergency powers
- 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
- A U.S. Vaccine Surge Is Coming, With Millions of Doses Promised, Bloomberg.
- Worth a listen for those of you with lingering questions about kids and COVID-19: Children and COVID, by the New York Times’ Daily podcast.
- Two young women in Florida ‘dressed up as grannies’ to get vaccinated, health official says, WaPo.
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
It’s Sunday…we just hit 500,000 dead citizens due to the pandemic. Take it seriously.