Minnesota has no new virus deaths; 1st time in nearly year
Published 2:31 pm Monday, March 22, 2021
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MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota health officials reported no new deaths due to COVID-19 on Monday for the first time in nearly a year.
The Minnesota Department of Health also reported 1,152 new cases, putting the state at 506,376 cases and 6,782 deaths since the start of the pandemic a year ago. While Mondays tend to feature fewer deaths reported than average, the figure is the first time the state has reported no new deaths in a daily situation update since April 13, the Star Tribune reported.
Despite the good news on deaths, health officials have said in recent weeks they’re worried about the spread of coronavirus mutations — called variants — in different parts of Minnesota, which they say could derail the state’s progress in fighting the pandemic.
Officials said the state is in a race against the spread of the variants and reaching Gov. Tim Walz’s goal of 80% of the state’s population being fully vaccinated.
As of Saturday, more than 2.2 million Minnesotans have received at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine, which includes more than 850,000 who have been fully inoculated.
The state is anticipating just over 151,000 doses this week to administer to people across the state. Walz said Friday he expects an allotment of more than 350,000 next week based on figures from the federal government.