Health experts shared earlier this week that COVID-19 numbers in Minnesota have made it the worst place to be in the nation as the pandemic rages on.
But what makes Minnesota's COVID case rate the worst in the country? Dr. Michael Osterholm joined News Talk 830 WCCO's Chad Hartman to answer the question and give insight into what the future holds in the state.
"We have one of the highest rates right now in the world, here in Minnesota, beginning to rival what we are seeing in Eastern Europe," Osterholm said.
When it comes to why, Osterholm shared that there is still a large number of the state's population that has no protection, either through vaccination or natural infection, against the virus.
He acknowledged that there have been a number of breakthrough cases and pushed for eligible people to get the booster.
"These vaccines are remarkable tools, but they aren't perfect," Osterholm said. "We need boosters. We need to get more people boosted. But the real driver behind this remains the unvaccinated population."
Related
He added that out of all the people who have been vaccinated, only 2.25% have had a breakthrough case, and only 0.2% have died from that breakthrough case.
In some counties in Minnesota, the vaccination rates remain at around 40%, and Osterholm says that is a leading factor in new cases. He said as he has before, "you can not run the clock out" on this virus.
When it comes to criticism that Osterholm receives for pushing the vaccine and what he says to those opposed to getting the shot, he tells them what he has seen.
"As of this past week, six of the conservative media people who have wailed on me over the past two years have had kind of the ultimate answer about [the vaccine] because they're all dead. They've all died from COVID," Osterholm said.
Related
He added that he doesn't take sharing that lightly because he doesn't want "another death to occur" or "another person to spend three to five weeks in an intensive care unit."
The increased number of cases not only has an effect on those who test positive but also those working in hospitals, and Osterholm said that the conditions are horrible.
"Intensive care staff are stretched beyond the max," the doctor said. "They are literally working under war-like conditions in terms of the stress and the post-traumatic stress that they are dealing with, and it doesn't end."
To ease the stress that doctors are facing, Osterholm set forth a clear plan, get vaccinated.
"There's no other way to say, we have to keep getting the message out that these vaccines are remarkable tools to save your life, or save the life of a loved one," Osterholm said.