Minnesota deaths up 6, to 1,417, in COVID-19 pandemic

Six more people have died of COVID-19 in Minnesota, health officials reported Saturday, as new test results pushed the number of confirmed cases statewide to more than 35,000.

The number of hospitalized patients declined significantly, dropping from 335 on Friday to 300 patients at Saturday's data release from the Minnesota Department of Health.

While weekly death tolls have dropped for several weeks, COVID-19 has caused 1,417 deaths across the state during the course of the pandemic. Residents of long-term care and assisted-living facilities accounted for 4 of the 6 newly announced deaths.

The latest numbers show 155 patients required intensive care, compared with 157 on Friday. Daily tallies for hospitalized patients in Minnesota have been trending down in recent weeks.

The state reported on Saturday a net increase of 417 newly confirmed cases on a volume of 11,521 completed tests. New case counts have been trending down in recent weeks in Minnesota, while Saturday's testing continues a trend of increased capacity.

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 in early March, 3,966 people have been hospitalized.

People at greatest risk from COVID-19 include those 65 and older, residents of long-term care facilities and those with underlying medical conditions.

Numbers released Saturday show health care workers have accounted for 3,560 cases statewide. A total of 30,401 Minnesotans who were infected with the novel coronavirus no longer need to be in isolation, up from 30,008 people at Friday's data release.

Confirmed cases have been reported in 86 of the state's 87 counties, with no cases in Lake of the Woods County in far northern Minnesota.

Most patients with COVID-19 don't need to be hospitalized. The illness usually causes mild or moderate sickness and many lack symptoms.

The Health Department added to its list of congregate care facilities publicly identified with at least one COVID-19 case among residents or staff, upping the total by five to 337 facilities. State officials are releasing names only for facilities with at least 10 residents.