EDITORIAL | Scoring Minnesota on COVID management

Opinion editor’s notice: Editorials characterize the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.

•••

The emergence of extremely transmissible COVID-19 variants makes it more and more difficult to reply this query: When will the pandemic be over?

However greater than two years after the virus made landfall in the US, there’s sufficient information to evaluate how nicely Minnesota has completed up to now in managing a historic public well being disaster. A walk-through of key metrics is well timed and crucial. It additionally units a strong basis for the controversy certain to come back within the upcoming fall election over the state’s COVID observe file.

So how did Minnesota do?

The response requires evaluating a broad, altering mixture of indicators. However, the start line ought to be how nicely the state protected folks from dying. And the vital measurement is the COVID demise price.

The U.S. Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) has tracked this since Jan. 21, 2020, and supplies comparability information with different states. Minnesota’s price over this era is 228 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants. That is nicely under the general U.S. price of 300 deaths. Simply 10 states bested Minnesota, with Vermont and Hawaii recording the bottom charges of 99 and 101, respectively.

Regionally, Minnesota outperformed all bordering states. Wisconsin posted 249 deaths per 100,000, with North Dakota registering 298. Iowa and South Dakota each exceeded the nationwide common, with 303 and 329 deaths, respectively.

Different key well being metrics additionally ought to be highlighted:

• Instances: Minnesota’s COVID case price is in the midst of the 50-state pack, with 26,428 per 100,000 inhabitants. Rhode Island, Alaska and North Dakota had the very best charges. Maryland, Oregon and Hawaii had the bottom. Regionally, Iowa had the bottom case price, with Minnesota having the second-lowest among the many 4 bordering states.
• Vaccinations: Minnesota’s proportion of these ages 5 and over who’re totally vaccinated ranks sixteenth nationally. (The pictures aren’t but obtainable for younger youngsters). The state’s 73.9% leads the area. Minnesota additionally ranks second amongst all states for the share of the totally vaccinated inhabitants ages 12 and over to have gotten a primary booster shot. And Minnesota presently ranks fourth nationally for the share of these over 65 who’ve had a second booster dose.
• Testing: The state ranks seventh nationally. Minnesota additionally far outpaced its regional neighbors, possible reflecting this state’s broadly obtainable no-cost testing choices.

Whereas these hewing to Minnesota exceptionalism are possible dissatisfied the state didn’t prime all measures, its general COVID well being metrics are strong nationally and spectacular regionally.

Nonetheless, the financial toll of pandemic mitigation efforts have to be thought of. Enterprise house owners heroically navigated the pandemic’s uncertainties in addition to masking, capability limits and different mitigations. Frustrations usually outpaced federal and state help’s skill to melt the influence.

However two essential high-altitude information factors recommend that Minnesota has stored tempo economically with neighbors that eased again on mitigation sooner.

• Unemployment price: Minnesota’s 2.2% in April was the bottom for the state since monitoring started in 1976 and even more healthy than the three.6% U.S. price. South Dakota, which had far looser COVID restrictions, was at 2.3%, with Iowa at 3%, and North Dakota and Wisconsin at 2.8%.
• GDP development: All states noticed will increase in actual gross home product (GDP) development from 2020 to 2021, in response to the U.S. Bureau of Financial Evaluation. Minnesota’s 5.7% improve ranked 18th nationally and surpassed that of Wisconsin and the Dakotas. Iowa led regionally with 6.4%.

The Star Tribune Editorial Board is not the primary to guage Minnesota’s dealing with of the pandemic. Politico took a run at it late final 12 months, scoring the states on well being, financial, academic and social responses. Minnesota was a powerful performer in that evaluation as nicely — with its common rating rating fifth nationally — and the report’s authors cited its balanced strategy.

COVID administration might be a high-profile difficulty throughout the fall election. These attacking the state’s file — or defending it — ought to argue their case with proof, not simply rhetoric.

Editorial Board members are David Banks, Jill Burcum, Scott Gillespie, Denise Johnson, Patricia Lopez, John Rash and D.J. Tice. Star Tribune Opinion employees members Maggie Kelly and Elena Neuzil additionally contribute, and Star Tribune Writer and CEO Michael J. Klingensmith serves as an adviser to the board.