COVID In Minnesota: With Vaccines Now Open For All 16+, State Reports 1M Have Completed Series

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- As Minnesota's vaccine eligibility expands to everyone 16 and older, the state reports that more than 1 million people have now completed their vaccine series.

Meanwhile, the Minnesota Department of Health reports that there are 1,278 new cases of the virus and one newly reported death. Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 517,881 positive cases and 6,836 deaths.

The state's rolling average positivity rate, which has been creeping up for weeks now, has finally topped the 5% rate that would indicate caution for authorities working to determine what restrictions should apply to venues -- the latest figure indicates a 5.2% positivity rate.

Hospitalization figures continue to also rise slightly, with about 7.6 new daily hospitalizations per 100,000 residents, according to the latest rolling average. Anything above 8 hospitalizations per 100,000 is considered high risk.

According to Minnesota's health department, Minnesota processed 14,321 COVID tests within the last 24 hours. Since the pandemic began, almost 3.7 million Minnesotans have been tested.

As of Tuesday, Minnesota has administered about 2.58 million doses of vaccine, with 1,003,316 people having completed the entire vaccine series. Roughly 1.6 million Minnesotans, or about 29% of the state's overall population, have received at least one dose.

The current tally also indicates that 81% of seniors (age 65 and older) in Minnesota are now vaccinated. The state also reports that 37% of Minnesotans age 16 and older have already received at least one dose.

The state has a Vaccine Connector program to help notify you when a vaccine becomes available to you. People who sign up for the connector may also be randomly selected for one of the state's community vaccination sites.