COVID deaths rise but remain far below Minnesota's 2020 toll

Dec 02, 20210

Alex Kormann, Star Tribune count

COVID-19 deaths in November 2021 were substantially lower than COVID-19 deaths in November 2020 because of effective vaccines, state health officials said.

Minnesota health officials on Wednesday urged renewed vigilance against COVID-19, looking back at November, this year's deadliest pandemic month, and ahead toward the threat of the new omicron variant.

State Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said Minnesota has strengths in its high vaccination and booster rates, increasing supply of monoclonal antibody therapies and surveillance system to detect variants. But she worried that Minnesotans after 20 months of the pandemic have "gotten a little bit lax" on prevention efforts such as mask-wearing.

"All viruses mutate all the time and each new infection in a person is a new opportunity for the virus to change," she said. "That is just one of many reasons why it's so important here in Minnesota and all around the world that we do what we can to limit the rate of those new infections."

https://www.startribune.com/covid-deaths-rise-but-remain-far-below-minnesotas-2020-toll/600122651/