Minnesota News and Outreach

Minnesota News and Outreach

Executive Order 21-21

Last week, Governor Walz announced Executive Order (EO) 21-21, which serves as a timeline to end most COVID-19 restrictions.

The announcement comes as more than 2.6 million Minnesotans have gotten their shot and the state is on track to vaccinate 70% of Minnesotans by the end of June. The most at-risk Minnesotans – seniors, long-term care residents, assisted living residents, educators, and frontline workers – have gotten their vaccines. Nearly 90% of Minnesotans over the age of 65 have gotten at least one dose.

The following changes began at 12 p.m. on May 7:

• Removed limits for outdoor dining, events, and social gatherings.

• Removed mask requirement outdoors except at large venues with over 500 people.

• Increased indoor event occupancy limits and group sizes.

• Increased indoor social gathering capacity limit to 50.

• Eliminated the state-established mandatory closing time for bars, restaurants, and food and beverage service at other places of public accommodation.

To learn more about the changes and next steps, visit Minnesota's Stay Safe Plan: Safely ending COVID-19 restrictions.

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Walk-ins at Community Vaccination Sites

Minnesotans can now walk in for a COVID-19 vaccine without an appointment at the state's COVID-19 Community Vaccination Program sites. Walk-ins for Minnesotans 16+ are now accepted at state community vaccination sites in Bloomington (Mall of America), Saint Paul (Roy Wilkins Auditorium), Lino Lakes, and Oakdale. Walk-ins for Minnesotans 18+ are now accepted at Mankato, Duluth, Rochester, and St. Cloud.

The federally-supported State Fairgrounds site is not currently accepting walk-ins at this time as it is currently administering second doses.

As Minnesotans under 18 must receive consent from a parent or guardian, the state encourages parents, guardians, and families to walk in and get vaccinated together.

Minnesotans can continue to make appointments ahead of time through the Minnesota COVID-19 Vaccine Connector or Find Vaccine Locations at local pharmacies, clinics, and hospitals.

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Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) Materials

We are adding new videos, print materials, and translated documents often. Check out the pages below to view, download, or print these resources.

Materials and Resources for COVID-19 Response

Videos for COVID-19 Response

The situation is changing rapidly. Visit Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) for the most up-to-date information and follow MDH on Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram to stay informed.

What's New

Pfizer Vaccine Authorized for Adolescents 12-15 years old

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in adolescents 12 to 15 years old earlier this week. Previously, the vaccine had been authorized for people age 16 and older.

Final federal guidance is expected to be issued from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) following today's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meeting.

Minnesota is ready to begin vaccinating this age group once final vaccination recommendations are issued and available for providers. We expect parents can make appointments for vaccinations later this week.

Minnesotans 12-15 years old should be able to get vaccinated anywhere Pfizer vaccines are available - including their health care provider, pharmacies, state sites, local health department, and pop-up and community events. Parent or guardian consent is required for COVID-19 vaccination for people younger than 18.

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COVID-19 Stories of Community Outreach and Partnership

COVID-19 Stories of Community Outreach and Partnership highlight the efforts of our staff in collaboration with community partners during the COVID-19 response. Some stories provide insight into how this work is done, others discuss what challenges our teams face, but all of them recognize how COVID-19 has pushed MDH to try new strategies so we can fulfill our mission of protecting, maintaining, and improving the health of all Minnesotans.

A Tale of COVID-19 Testing in Two Cities: State, local, and community partnership

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were increasing numbers of cases in Spanish-speaking communities as well as outbreaks at food manufacturing and processing plants where many workers are members of the Latinx community. One specific community experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks was Watonwan County. It was not long before Watonwan County decided to hold community testing events at Madelia and St. James, two cities in Watonwan County just 20 minutes apart from each other.

Because of existing relationships with community organizations working with Latinx/Hispanic communities and local public health, the testing events were a huge success, with many members of the local Latinx community coming out to get tested.

Read more: A Tale of COVID-19 Testing in Two Cities: State, local, and community partnership