Minnesota's COVID-19 status is 'quite precarious' - Minneapolis Star Tribune

Coronavirus case counts in Minnesota cracked the 300,000 mark on Saturday, capping an alarming 16-day run that saw 100,000 new infections and more than 700 reported deaths.

While the number of new cases appears to have leveled off over the past week, deaths are soaring, with the state reporting 320 fatalities during that time — the second highest weekly total since the virus first hit.

Saturday readings for recent population-adjusted case growth were lower than a week ago across the Upper Midwest, although the region continued to report nation-leading numbers.

Compared with the previous week, Wisconsin and Minnesota had slightly lower seven-day averages for case growth, according to a tracking website from Brown University.

Still, with the regional run-up in COVID-19 cases this fall, states across the Upper Midwest are now reporting very high numbers of deaths.

On Saturday, Minnesota reported 45 new COVID-19 deaths and 9,040 new cases on more than 109,000 newly completed tests, according to the state Health Department.

It’s difficult to interpret the two-day totals released Saturday for new cases and completed tests, Ehresmann said, due to the holiday week.

Health officials say case growth trends help predict the rate of hospitalizations and deaths that follow.

The recent moderation in Minnesota’s case growth is encouraging, doctors say, yet models being followed at Allina Health and HealthPartners suggest that cases won’t peak here until December.

With the two-day figures released Saturday, Minnesota has now seen 304,023 positive cases, 16,423 hospitalizations and 3,521 deaths since the pandemic arrived here in March.

For the week, Minnesota reported a total of 320 COVID-19 deaths, down slightly from 327 last week.