Gov. Walz to announce Thursday whether Minnesota's stay-at-home order will be extended

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ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Gov. Tim Walz will announce Thursday afternoon whether he will extend Minnesota’s stay-at-home order beyond Monday, May 4, when it is set to expire.

At a press conference in Worthington Wednesday, Walz indicated he will announce that more businesses will be allowed to open, but said his approach to reopening the economy will be like "turning a dial" not flipping on a light switch.

The stay-at-home order has been in effect since March 27 to slow the spread of COVID-19 and give the state more time to prepare for a possible surge in cases. Under the order, Minnesotans asked to limit movement outside of their homes. They are still allowed to do certain activities such as exercising outside or going to the grocery store, but they must adhere to social distancing guidelines.

Some Minnesota businesses return to work under governor’s executive order

Some Minnesota businesses return to work under Governor Tim Walz's executive order. Most of the businesses are in manufacturing and do not involve any customer interaction.

On Monday, an estimated 80,000 to 100,000 people were allowed to go back to work, as long as their employers had a plan in place that allowed employees to social distance, work from home whenever possible and stay home if they are sick.

As of Thursday, Minnesota has had 4,644 positive cases of COVID-19 and 319 deaths attributed the disease.