Ten more people have died of COVID-19 in Minnesota, health officials reported Saturday, as the count for positive test results grew by a record 840 confirmed cases statewide.
The pandemic has caused a total of 852 deaths across the state thus far, according to data posted Saturday morning by the Minnesota Department of Health.
The state is reporting its first case in Hubbard County. Overall, 84 of Minnesota's 87 counties now have known cases, with none confirmed in Cook, Lake of the Woods and Stevens counties.
A total of 568 people require hospitalization, compared with 534 on Friday, the Health Department said. There were 215 patients in the ICU, compared with 233 in intensive care on Friday.
Concerns have been growing in recent days about intensive care capacity in the Twin Cities.
COVID-19 is a viral respiratory illness caused by a new coronavirus that surfaced late last year. Since the first case was reported in Minnesota on March 6, a total of 2,534 people have been hospitalized, up from 2,432 on Friday.
People at greatest risk from COVID-19 include: those age 65 years and older, residents of long-term care facilities, and those with underlying medical conditions. The medical conditions range from lung disease, serious heart conditions and cancer to severe obesity, diabetes and kidney patients who need dialysis.
Residents of long-term care accounted for 8 of the 10 newly announced deaths. Among the new deaths were residents of Anoka and Cass counties age 50 to 59 — a cohort that has seen only 42 deaths thus far in the pandemic, the Health Department says. Most deaths have been in people age 70 and older.
