The Minnesota Department of Health announced this morning (Aug. 17) than more than 1 million Minnesotans have been tested for the COVID-19 coronavirus (approximately 18 percent of the population of the state), including almost 13,000 in the previous 24 hours.
To date, there have been 65,716 confirmed COVID-19. Of those, 58,859 have recovered and no longer require isolation and 1,712 have died (including 1,280 in long-term care facilities). A total of 286 people are currently in Minnesota hospitals, including 155 in intensive care.
According to Minnesota’s Dial Back Dashboard (https://mn.gov/covid19/data/response-prep/dial-back-dashboard.jsp), Minnesota’s positivity rate for testing has hovered around 5 percent since the start of August. If the rate climbs to 15 percent or increases 5 percent over a 14-day period, health officials would consider tightening COVID-19 restrictions.
To see the Minnesota Department of Health’s Daily Situation Update for COVID-19, click here: https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/coronavirus/situation.html