Minnesota sets new daily record for COVID-19 cases, deaths, tests

Minnesota saw its highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths reported in a single day Friday with 5,454 new cases and 36 deaths, according to the latest data from the state health department.

(FOX 9) - Minnesota saw its highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths reported in a single day Friday with 5,454 new cases and 36 deaths, according to the latest data from the state health department.

The Minnesota Department of Health reports the state has now recorded 170,305 cases of COVID-19 and 2,591 deaths attributed to the disease since the onset of the pandemic. There are currently 31,117 active cases in Minnesota that require the infected person to be isolated.

Minnesota has set a new daily high for COVID-19 cases for four straight days. The number of newly reported COVID-19 cases increased nearly 38% from Thursday to Friday.

This is the first time Minnesota has reported over 5,000 cases of COVID-19 in a single day. The state saw its first day with over 3,000 just over a week ago.

The record 5,454 newly reported COVID-19 cases were on a record high volume of completed tests. There were 45,769 tests completed in the most recent 24-hour period—a positivity rate of 11.9%, relatively unchanged from the previous day.

Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm reported Friday the 7-day average positivity rate is now 9.8%, up from 7% the week prior. However, it is a lagging indicator and does not include the current week’s record high case counts. Anything over 5% is a concern for MDH because it indicates a high rate of community transmission of the disease.

“This test positivity rate clearly shows that finding more cases is not just a matter of testing more. We are testing a lot more and finding a lot more,” Malcolm said.

The number of cases are now growing at nearly double the rate testing is. Minnesota saw a 16% increase in cases from the week before and only an 8.3% increase in the number of tests.

The 36 deaths included two people in their 40s. The rest of the deaths were people ages 60 and older.

Thirteen of the deaths were in the Twin Cities metro area while the rest were in Greater Minnesota.

Of the 36 newly reported deaths, 23 were people who lived in long-term care or assisted living facilities. To date, approximately 71% of the state’s deaths have been in those types of facilities.

"These are sobering numbers to be sure," Malcolm said during the health department's Friday COVID-19 briefing.

ICU beds near capacity in Twin Cities metro as COVID-19 impacts health care workers

As the number of COVID-19 cases increases, so does the strain on hospitals. In the Twin Cities metro, both intensive and non-intensive care beds are inching closer to full capacity.

Hospitalizations remain at record high levels with 1,038 people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Minnesota as of Thursday, according to MDH’s COVID-19 response capacity dashboard. Of those 1,038 patients, 224 are in the intensive care unit.

In the Twin Cities metro, both ICU and non-ICU beds are inching closer to full capacity.