263 Fully Vaccinated Minnesota Residents Have Died Of COVID-19 Since Mid-September

Doctors complain that Covid hospitals are 'overwhelmed' AFP / OLIVER BUNIC

KEY POINTS

The state has fully vaccinated more than 3 million people
More than 45,000 breakthrough cases were reported since mid-September
The state's current number of active cases is the lowest recorded in three weeks

An increasing number of breakthrough COVID-19 cases have been recorded in Minnesota since mid-September, state data revealed.

At least 263 fully vaccinated Minnesotans have died of COVID-19 since Sept. 19. The figures represent 0.008% of the state’s 3,180,723 fully vaccinated residents, data updated Wednesday by the Minnesota Department of Health showed.

Since mid-September, 45,827 fully vaccinated Minnesotans have also tested positive for COVID-19, representing 1.441% of the state’s vaccinated population. Health officials have also recorded 2,178 breakthrough hospitalizations.

Overall, state health officials have recorded 752,060 COVID-19 cases among the unvaccinated and vaccinated population, 1,858 of which were reported on Tuesday, according to CBS Local.

Minnesota has also recorded 8,379 total coronavirus-related deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, a report published Oct. 14 showed. Health officials recorded 32 additional COVID-19 deaths Tuesday.

As of Tuesday, the state’s rolling seven-day average positivity rate was at 8.3%, representing what could be a downward trend of infections in the state.

Known active cases fell to 18,153 on Wednesday, the lowest figures that the state has recorded in three weeks. The rate of positive COVID-19 tests also dipped to 6.3%. While the number is higher than the 5% threshold officials have set, it is down to its lowest point since Oct. 1, according to an analysis by MPR News.

The latest COVID-19 data from Minnesota comes as the state prepares to vaccinate children below the age of 12 in early November when federal officials are expected to grant Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine emergency use authorization for young children.

"We've been working hard on planning for the administration of vaccines to 5- to 11-year-olds for some time," Minnesota Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm told Star Tribune. "We are ready to go when the vaccines are approved."

The state has since vaccinated 50% of children aged 12 to 15 and 56% of residents aged 16 to 17. To promote vaccination, Minnesota also announced a program that gives children between 12 to 17 a $200 Visa gift card and a chance to win a college scholarship worth $100,000, according to Fox9.