Declining COVID-19 Cases and Hospitalizations in Minnesota a Sign of Vaccine Progress

Since the vaccine rollout for COVID-19 began, transmission rates and ICU hospitalizations have decreased. According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, hospitalizations this last week were equivalent to what was seen in Minnesota back in September, 2020. Additionally, ICU hospitalizations were down to levels seen last April. Doctors, including Andrew Olson, MD, Associate Professor in the Division of Pediatric Hospital Medicine at the University of Minnesota, are concluding that this decrease may partially be due to the vaccination rollout to vulnerable populations and frontline healthcare workers. As the most vulnerable become vaccinated, their chances of catching, spreading, or becoming deathly ill from the virus decreases. Even with fewer case numbers and hospitalizations, medical professions are concerned about new flare-ups as the new variants spread throughout the country. For now, social distancing and effective testing practices are the best chance of reducing the spread until vaccination efforts can be expanded to other at-risk groups and the general public. To read the full article and Dr. Olson’s interview in the Star Tribune, please follow this link.