'Low' COVID-19 Risk In Wright County As Cases Climb In Minnesota: CDC

WRIGHT COUNTY, MN — Public health officials are urging residents in at least nine Minnesota counties to once again wear masks indoors due to “high” levels of COVID-19 in those communities.

Seven counties in southeastern Minnesota — Rice, Dodge, Olmsted, Wabasha, Fillmore, Winona and Houston — and two in northern Minnesota — Roseau and Lake of the Woods counties — had a “high” COVID-19 levels Tuesday, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s county-level data dashboard.

Residents in counties with “high” levels of COVID-19 should wear masks when in inside in public, stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines and get tested if they feel symptoms, the CDC said.

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Those who are immunocompromised or at high risk for severe disease should consider avoiding nonessential indoor activities in public spaces and develop a plan for rapid testing, according to the CDC.

Just 4.25 percent of all U.S. counties — 137 — had a “high” level of COVID-19 on Tuesday, the CDC’s dashboard shows.

Wright County is among 2,630 U.S. counties that had “low” levels of COVID-19 on Tuesday, though cases are trending toward the threshold for "medium," according to the CDC.

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The CDC moves counties from from "low" to "medium" when they record more than 200 new cases per 100,000 people. That measure rose from about 110 to 152 from May 5-12 in Wright County, according to the CDC. It stood at just 21.68 on March 31.

Public data from the Minnesota Department of Health shows COVID-19 cases are on the rise again.

The state recorded its highest-ever seven-day average of new cases — almost 11,000 — on Jan. 12, public health statistics show. That measure fell to just 316 by mid-March and hovered in that range for almost a month before starting to climb.

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Minnesota’s seven-day average of new cases hit 1,711 on Tuesday, according to the Department of Health.

More than 37,000 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Wright County since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, and at least 304 residents have died, according to the Minnesota Department of Health.

Wright County residents have been hospitalized almost 1,500 times with COVID-19 symptoms.

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About 64.4 percent of county residents who are 5 and older have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine, including 96.3 percent of residents 65 and older, the state’s data show. Less than 39 percent of residents 5 and older are up to date on their vaccinations.

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