COVID In Minnesota: 4 Deaths, 115 New Cases As Rate Of Community Spread Rises
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - Health officials on Friday reported 115 new cases and four additional deaths. Though hospitalizations and daily new cases of COVID-19 continue to plummet, more than half of the new cases do not know where they contracted the virus.
Community spread remains at its highest point since the beginning of the pandemic - 51.5% as of last week. This is a stark contrast to other figures which are plunging; the state is seeing 3.4 new cases per 100,000 residents, continuing to decline following a spike in April. There are also 3.4 new hospital admissions per 100,000 residents, a number not seen since April of 2020.
The Minnesota Department of Health also reported Friday that the positivity rate has dropped to 1.8%, lower than the early days of the pandemic.
In all, Minnesota has seen 604,291 cases of COVID-19 since last March and 7,531 deaths. Over 10 million COVID-19 tests have been processed, roughly 14,000 of which were completed in the last 24 hours.
Vaccinations also continue to tick upwards, as 66.1% of Minnesotans 16 and older have received at least one vaccine dose. Figures show 62% have completed the series.
Roughly 90% of Minnesotans 65 and older have received at least one dose, and 34% of kids between the ages of 12 and 15 have gotten their first dose. In all, more than 5.5 million vaccines have been administered.
The state is hoping to reach a 70% vaccination rate by July 1, in order to meet President Joe Biden's goal of vaccinating 70% of Americans over the age of 16 by July 4.
