WILLMAR — The deaths of four individuals in Lac qui Parle County due to COVID-19 were reported Thursday, and Stearns County also recorded a death, according to the Thursday update from the Minnesota Department of Health.
The update also showed an increase in new daily COVID-19 cases in the 11 counties tracked by the West Central Tribune. There were 136 cases reported.
The state reported 16 deaths.
The deaths in Lac qui Parle County included two individuals in the 90-94 age category, one in the 85-89 age category and one in the 95-99 age category. Stearns County reported the death of an individual in the 85-89 age category.
Stearns County reported 64 new COVID-19 cases. Kandiyohi County reported 20 new cases.
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Meeker County had 10 new cases and Redwood County had nine. Pope and Renville counties each reported eight cases; Swift County had five and Lac qui Parle had four; Big Stone and Yellow Medicine counties each reported three; and Chippewa County had two cases.
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The state added 1,857 cases, bring the cumulative number of cases to 510,398.
Of the cumulative number of cases, 38,898 of them have been among health care workers.
The state’s current total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 is now at 6,814. Most of the deaths, 4,264, have occurred in long-term care or assisted living facilities, and 5,646 of the people who died were 70 or older.
The information was included in the latest daily situation update from the Minnesota Department of Health , released at 11 a.m. daily. The data released are current as of 4 p.m. the day before.
Since the start of the pandemic, the number of COVID-19 cases among residents confirmed to reside in area counties and the number of deaths includes:
Big Stone County: 537 cases; 4 deaths
Chippewa County: 1,417 cases; 35 deaths
Kandiyohi County: 5,990 cases; 79 deaths
Lac qui Parle County: 710 cases; 21 deaths
Meeker County: 2,153 cases; 36 deaths
Pope County: 900 cases; 6 deaths
Redwood County: 1,528 cases; 34 deaths
Renville County: 1,590 cases; 43 deaths
Stearns County: 19,518 cases; 209 deaths
Swift County: 919 cases; 18 deaths
Yellow Medicine County: 1,019 cases; 17 deaths
The state is now also reporting daily vaccine administration numbers. The vaccine is not yet available to the general public but is being provided to targeted groups.
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As of Thursday’s report, 1,475,130 people have received one dose and 878,469 have completed the vaccine series statewide.
Big Stone County has 41.4 percent of its population receiving at least one dose and Lac qui Parle County is at 38.7 percent. Meeker County is on the other end of the range in the region at 22.5 percent. Kandiyohi County is at 25.5 percent.
According to the figures available Thursday, the number of individuals who have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine in area counties includes:
Big Stone: 2,069
Chippewa: 3,729
Kandiyohi: 10,943
Lac qui Parle: 2,603
Meeker: 5,201
Pope: 3,359
Redwood: 4,216
Renville: 4,193
Stearns: 38,501
Swift: 3,121
Yellow Medicine: 3,480
The vaccine data web page is updated at 11 a.m. daily, but it can take up to 48 hours for data to be reported to the state and processed.
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