Gov. Walz: Minnesota now able to give 20,000 virus tests daily

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota reported 10 more deaths from the coronavirus on Monday, the same day state officials said they had reached their goal of being able to test as many as 20,000 people a day.

Gov. Tim Walz set the daily testing goal two months ago, calling it at the time a key for the state to successfully manage the pandemic. Walz touted a partnership between the state, Mayo Clinic and the University of Minnesota to build out the capacity.

The three partners have used the capacity to supplement testing done by more than 265 health care organizations around the state, the governor’s office said, including pop-up testing at the sites of potential local outbreaks including in Minneapolis and St. Paul after large protests following George Floyd’s death.

Six of the 10 deaths announced Monday were residents of long-term care facilities. Two were jail or prison inmates. Six were in people age 70 or older.

The state reported 315 new confirmed cases of the virus.

The number of people requiring hospitalizations and hospitalizations in intensive care both continued a downward trend that dates back to late May.