The state of Minnesota reported 1,565 new cases of COVID-19 and 31 more deaths from the illness and its complications on Saturday, Jan. 23.
Of the 31 deaths, 17 people were residents of long-term care and assisted living facilities and about 55% were in Greater Minnesota, or outside the seven-county metro region.
Half of the new cases were in Greater Minnesota.
Completed diagnostics tests were up by about 43,300 on Saturday, putting the single-day testing positivity rate at 3.6%. The single-day testing positivity rate is the percentage of tests that come back positive. Health officials widely view 5% as the threshold for widespread community transmission.
The state reported Saturday that more than 229,000 Minnesotans had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and more than 59,700 of those people had completed the two-dose series. That newly reported data from Jan. 20 is already three days old and doesn't account for the 7,325 Minnesotans who had received their first dose of a vaccine at one of the state's nine pilot clinics on Thursday, Jan 21, and Friday, Jan. 22.
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Pilot clinics opened again Saturday to vaccinate more Minnesotans aged 65 and older who were able to secure an appointment, along with prekindergarten through grade 12 educator and staff as well as child care workers who were selected by their employers.
The clinics are located in Andover, Brooklyn Center, Fergus Falls, Marshall, Mountain Iron, North Mankato, Rochester, St. Cloud and Thief River Falls. Four of them opened Thursday and the rest opened Friday.
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- Minnesota Department of Health COVID-19 hotline: 651-201-3920.
- COVID-19 discrimination hotline: 833-454-0148
- Minnesota Department of Health COVID-19 website: Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) website .
