COVID-19 in Minnesota briefing: State health leaders address mask mandate, medical supply update

During the Minnesota Department of Health’s COVID-19 briefing on Friday, state health leaders discussed topics ranging from the median age of positive cases continuing to go up, health care workers’ constant need for masks and gloves and clarification on the mask mandate declared by Gov. Tim Walz.

On Wednesday, Minnesota joined more than two dozen states where the use of face coverings in public spaces is mandatory to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Gov. Tim Walz orders masks be worn in indoor public spaces across Minnesota

Minnesota Department of Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said they are continuing to receive many questions regarding the mask mandate. People who are exempt from wearing them include anyone with a medical condition or mental health condition that makes wearing a mask difficult. Malcolm adds children 5 years old and younger are also exempt, and kids under 2 years old should not wear face masks. For kids above the age of 2, MDH recommends wearing a face covering if they can do so.

"We do believe masking helps," said Malcolm. "Masking isn’t by itself a magic answer, however. Still need to social distance, avoid prolonged contact in crowded places, particularly indoors."

The intent of the face mask mandate is to reinforce the expectations for Minnesotans, not leaving it solely to local units of the governor or employers, Malcolm said. The governor said the intent for it is compliance, not enforcement.

"Anyone with jurisdictional roles is not looking to hand out tickets, but there is a petty misdemeanor ticket associated. I think the hope and the intent is people will understand the importance of this," Malcolm said.

MDH Director of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Prevention and Control Division, Kris Ehresmann, said the state is seeing more cases in younger, working-age residents. For that reason, she reminds those to consider the roles they have in life before they decide to participate in a situation where social distancing isn’t an option. Minnesota is no longer seeing workplaces being a source of transmission. Instead, it’s individuals who are socially engaged.

"Do you work in a child care setting? Are you a health care worker?" Ehresmann prompted.

Malcolm readdressed the median age of positive cases continuing to drop on Friday. The median age currently sits at 36 years old, a drop of 1.3 years in a week and 40 years since a month ago. The reason relates to a more general testing availability, as the state focused on long-term and congregate care facilities initially when the COVID-19 outbreak began. However, Malcolm expresses concern that younger people are contracting the virus.

Alice Roberts-Davis, Minnesota Department of Administration Commissioner, said the situation involving medical supplies and PPE continues to be a "challenging situation" and in "high demand." She noted it’s a 24-hour job each day to make sure health care workers are supplied adequately.

She says she is not concerned with the current status because of the amount at hospitals and the state’s warehouse. The state warehouse is supplemental to health care providers in Minnesota. They work with regional health care coalitions for supplies; if they are unsuccessful they can request supplies from the state.

"Health care facilities are at or above where they need to be for PPE since the beginning of the pandemic," Roberts-Davis said during the call.

She added that gloves that meet standards are the most challenging to find, as well as N-95 masks. To combat the problem with masks, MDH partnered with the University of Minnesota to get masks to reach the safety requirements needed. Roberts-Davis said the state is waiting on two million respirators.

According to Roberts-Davis, the state is in a better position than where it was four months ago. The state has been able to create its own supply chain to ensure PPE is available here.

Ehresmann discussed a recent report of 11 cases of severe lung injuries in the state that are associated with vaping. The cases occurred in June and July in Minnesotans between the ages of 14 and 16.

Minnesota health officials warn of 11 suspected cases of lung injury associated with vaping

Ehresmann says the patients sought care with similar symptoms in relation to COVID-19. All patients had a history of vaping, mostly involving THC. Similar reports of lung injuries were reported in California. The issue was a rising one in 2019 and has not gone away, Ehresmann added.

Some other notes from the Friday briefing include:

• MDH has been made aware of scammers posing as the department, asking for credit card information in order to have a testing kit delivered to the individual. Ehresmann stressed that MDH will never do that.
• Regarding the death rate of COVID-19 in Minnesota, it ranges from .01% in the younger age group to 59.1% in the 100 years old and older group. Ehresmann said overall the case fatality rate sits around 3.2%, and is less than 1% in ages up through 50.