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Minnesota health officials reported 21 more COVID-19 deaths on Sunday, while the number of newly confirmed cases fell from Saturday’s near-record high.

The number of active COVID-19 cases in the state also ticked downward from Saturday’s record high of more than 13,000. It now stands at 12,968; it was 8,171 on Oct. 1.

Looking at averages over the past week, the daily increase in cases and the test positivity rate in Minnesota fell slightly on Sunday, while the average daily death toll climbed to 16.

Here are Minnesota’s current COVID-19 statistics:

• 2,349 deaths (21 new)
• 133,802 positive cases (1,684 new); 118,485 off isolation
• 2,686,302 tests; 1,770,362 people tested
• 6.7 percent seven-day positive test rate

Twelve of the 21 deaths reported Sunday were residents of long-term care facilities. Those who died ranged in age from someone in their 30s to someone over 100.

Minnesota has now seen at least 1,000 new COVID-19 cases for 18 consecutive days.

Sunday’s weekly average test positivity rate of 6.7 percent was down from 6.8 percent on Saturday, but up from about 4.6 percent in early October.

“There is more disease out there, and not just because we’re doing more testing,” Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm told reporters Friday.

She said 565 people were in hospitals as of Friday with 160 needing intensive care. Both are near their late-May highs.

 

South-central Minnesota update:

• Faribault County: two new cases, 231 total cases

• Freeborn County: three new cases, 669 total cases

Freeborn County Public Health stated the new cases included one person in their 30s, one person in their 50s and one person in their 70s. The county has 46 active cases, and two people from the county who are currently hospitalized.

• Mower County: nine new cases, 1,517  total cases, two new deaths (one person age 95-99, one person 100+)

• Steele County: three new cases, 759 total cases

• Waseca County: one new case, 928 total cases