Credit: Hospital CLINIC via Flickr
Minnesota reported the second death of a child in the state of COVID-19. A health department update on Wednesday reveals that a 5 to 9-year-old child in Chippewa County died of the disease caused by the coronavirus.
It is the second case of child death by COVID-19. The first was informed by the health department in July. No children between 10 and 18 years old died of the disease in Minnesota, and only nine people between 20 and 29 years old died of complications related to the disease, according to data from the health department.
The child’s identity and hometown were not disclosed, nor is it clear whether the child had any underlying health problems.
Wednesday’s Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) COVID update includes 677 new cases and a total of 11 deaths.
The recently reported deaths bring the state total to 6,319 during the course of the pandemic. Of those deaths, 63% (3,983) were residents of long-term care facilities, including seven of the 11 reported on Wednesday.
As of February 8, the state reported that 583,602 people had received at least 1 dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 168,495 people had completed the two doses of the vaccine needed for the maximum effect of the vaccines.
MDH has a public panel to monitor the progress of the vaccine in Minnesota, and you can view it here.
Two new variants of the coronavirus have been confirmed in Minnesota, including one that was the first known case of the Brazil P.1 variant in the United States. This case involves a Minnesotan who traveled to Brazil. There are 8 confirmed cases of variant B.1.1.7. The two new strains are believed to be more transmissible.
Hospitalizations
As of February 9, the number of people with COVID-19 hospitalized in Minnesota was 317. Of those hospitalized, 78 were in intensive care and 239 were receiving treatment outside the ICU.
Across the state, there were 164 ICU beds available. During the November surge, the state had less than 100 ICU beds available. The number of beds available depends on the number of employees available, so the totals change constantly.
Test rates and positivity
The 677 positive results in Wednesday’s update were a total of 20,217 tests completed, creating a daily test positivity rate of 3.35%.
According to Johns Hopkins University, the Minnesota test positivity rate for the past seven days is 3.45%, making it one of the lowest rates in the country.
The World Health Organization recommends that a percentage rate of positivity (total positives divided by the total of completed tests) below 5% for at least two weeks is necessary to reopen the economy safely. This limit of 5% is based on the total of positives divided by the total of tests.
Coronavirus in Minnesota in numbers
- Total tests: 6,828,887 (above 6,808,634)
- People tested: 3,327,336 (from 3,322,594)
- People with at least 1 vaccine injection: 583,602 (over 569,164)
- People with 2 vaccines: 168,495 (out of 162,132)
- Positive cases: 465,905 (over 469,254)
- Deaths: 6,319 – 262 of which are “probable *” (above 6,308)
- Patients who no longer need isolation: 456,244 (over 455,280)
* Probable deaths are patients who died after a positive test using the COVID-19 antigen test, which is considered less accurate than the most common PCR test.