West central Minnesota cases, hospitalizations down in latest state update on COVID-19

Linda Vanderwerf, West Central Tribune, Willmar, Minn.
·3 min read

Jan. 20—WILLMAR

— The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in west central Minnesota has fallen sharply, according to the

weekly situation update

released Thursday by the Minnesota Department of Health.

No deaths related to COVID-19 were reported in the 11 counties tracked by the

West Central Tribune

.

From from Jan. 8 through Jan. 14, 178 new confirmed cases were reported, a drop of 73 cases from the week before.

The state's report of new cases is an undercount, because at-home test results are not included.

In west central Minnesota, nine people from area counties were hospitalized, a decrease of 15 from the week before. Stearns and Kandiyohi counties each had three people in hospitals; Meeker County had two and Pope County had one.

In all cases, the numbers in weekly updates are preliminary and may change as more information is received.

The state's current death toll attributed to COVID-19 is 14,085, an increase of 54 from last week's report and an average of more than seven deaths per day.

The state's cumulative number of cases is 1,747,751, including reinfections. New cases in the past week totaled 2,646, an average of 378 new cases each day. The daily average was about about 120 fewer cases per day in the previous weekly update.

The omicron variant of the coronavirus accounted for 100% of reported cases last week and for all cases since May.

People who have tested positive for COVID-19 again more than 90 days after an initial lab-confirmed positive test are considered to have a reinfection.

New cases reported in the area last week — Big Stone, 2; Chippewa, 6; Kandiyohi, 28; Lac qui Parle, 7; Meeker, 14; Pope, 4; Redwood, 11; Renville, 4; Stearns, 93; Swift, 3; Yellow Medicine, 7.

The state reported 398 people hospitalized with COVID-19, as of Jan. 17. That includes 361 people hospitalized in medical units, 122 fewer than the week before, and another 37 in intensive care units, four fewer than the week before.

Hospitalizations had a seven-day average of 40 in ICUs and 396 in medical units. Both daily averages are lower than in the previous report.

As of Jan. 17, 4,007,530 Minnesotans, 72%, have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and 68% of the state's population, 3,782,463, have completed the vaccine series.

The number of people listed as being up-to-date with their vaccines, meaning they have had booster shots, is 1,292,253, which is 23.2% of Minnesotans. For ages 6 months through 4 years, up to date means a complete primary series. For ages 5 and older, up to date means a complete primary series and a bivalent booster dose when due.

In June 2022, the department began providing a weekly update, replacing the daily updates that began in spring 2020. The updates are released each Thursday at 11 a.m. and include data received as of 4 a.m. the preceding Tuesday.

When the report refers to numbers from last week, it refers to information gathered from Sunday through Saturday the week before the information is released.