9-16 COVID-19 Update from MN Department of Health

Minnesota Department of Health COVID-19 Update 9-16-2020

Read the 9-14 MN COVID-19 Update from MN Department of Health Here

The Minnesota Department of Health will hold its 100th conference call today to brief members of the media on the latest public health information regarding COVID-19. Reporters will have time for questions following the update.

MDH Commissioner Jan Malcolm:

• Globally, 29.6 million cases worldwide since start of pandemic; 935,000 total deaths
• In U.S, 6.6 million cases since pandemic began; 195,000 deaths
• In Minnesota, 85,813 cumulative cases (up 513 over previous reporting day)
• Of the 85,813 cases, 79,583 (93%) have recovered and are no longer considered infectious
• In Minnesota, 1,933 total deaths (up 7 deaths over prior day). 4 of the 7 new deaths at private residences, 3 at long-term care or assisted-living facilities. 1 of the deaths a person in 100s, 2 in their 80s, 3 in 60s, 1 in 50s.
• Hospitalized due to COVID-19 as of today in MN: 244; Hospitalized in MN ICUs as of today: 136
• Hospitalizations in MN are near a two-month low.
• 7-day test positivity rate is 4.8% (this has declined slightly in recent days). There is a one-week lag period with this rate as the state verifies the cases.
• Concerned about “rapid growth in cases in some of our neighboring states.”

MDH Director of Infectious Disease and Epidemiology Kris Ehresmann:

• Releasing 14-day case rate data Thursday that schools use for guidance. (This won’t account for Labor Day weekend and opening of schools). There’s a lag period with the data.
• Case rate increases take a couple of weeks to show up in the data.
• CDC released 57-page COVID-19 Vaccine Playbook. Not yet known what vaccines will be available at what efficacy and at what times.
• “There will also be a need for strong IT solutions,” said Ehresmann as part of the vaccine action plan. This area has yet to be developed. Waiting on information from federal government for this aspect.
• “This (vaccination) process will be infinitely more complex than the mass vaccinations that we’ve done in the past, even H1N1,” she said.

MDH Medical Director Dr. Ruth Lynfield:

• MDH now has a toolkit for health care workers that provide mental health resources
• “These professionals have been working under extremely intense circumstances for months,” said Lynfield.
• MDH began a voluntary statewide survey of households to better understand COVID-19. It’s known as the CASPER survey developed by the CDC.
• Survey is between Sept. 14 and Sept. 30. Households will be randomly selected.
• All health information collected during the survey will remain confidential.
• Public health workers will wear vests with name tags that identify them as members of an MDH CASPER team. Their vehicles will have magnets on the side that say, “COVID-19 Survey Team.” Households will not be notified in advance.
• Each team has a health care professional hired by MDH and trained to do two different COVID-19 tests:
  • A nasal swab test: a nurse puts a swab into your nose for a few seconds and rotates it a little. This is done on both sides of the nose. This test is to see if you have COVID-19 now.
  • A serology test (blood test): a nurse pricks your finger to take a few drops of blood. This test is done to see if you already had COVID-19.

Q&A Session and Notes:

• Ehresmann: More than 23,000 Minnesota women of child-bearing age (ages 15 to 44) tested positive for COVID-19. Just over 4%, 999, reported as pregnant during COVID-19 specimen collection.
  • 198 pregnant women hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19
  • 18 admitted to ICU
  • 2 pregnant women fatalities (1 of the deaths did not necessarily occur at the time of the COVID-19 infection)
• “We’re seeing the majority of the pregnant women having a positive outcome,” said Ehresmann.
  • CDC Data on COVID-19 during pregnancy
• Reaction to Big Ten football closer to resuming and MN prep football and volleyball. “We’ve appreciate the (MSHSL’s) careful thinking and attention to this,” said Malcolm. “We’re always concerned about things that increase close contacts of large numbers of people,” said Malcolm, noting she’s not just concerned about the games themselves, but the socialization that comes with them.
• Advice for parents of athletes? Malcolm: “We know that these are complicated decisions.” “The games themselves do carry some level of risk, especially the high-contact sports.”
  • Ehresmann: “I absolutely feel for the parents,” she said, noting she also has been a mom of athletes.
    • 1,452 MN cases as of Sept. 9 that have been associated with sports activities (includes 888 cases in adults)
    • 3,348 people recommended for quarantine due to sports cases
    • 62 outbreaks or clusters, 15 associated with basketball, 9 hockey, 9 soccer, 9 football, 6 volleyball.
  • Lynfield: “It’s a complex issue.” “We need to be mindful and we need to continue to weigh how much viral activity there is in our community and what are the activities that we’re doing. This is not a cold.” “There are some people who do fine with it, but there are others, including young people, who don’t do fine.”
  • “We don’t have a sense of all the things this virus can do,” said Lynfield.
• Plan to monitor presidential rallies coming to MN? Malcolm: Yes, we work with local public health colleagues around the state.
• How will CASPER survey help with long-term modeling? Malcolm: University of Minnesota getting close to release new predictive model on COVID-19 cases. CASPER survey will help give us an idea of how many people have been exposed to COVID-19 in different parts of Minnesota.
  • 30+ national models out there that also includes Minnesota
  • These models help inform public health decisions, said Malcolm.

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