For most of Wednesday and Thursday, there has been a flood of local and national events canceled, including the latest news that Major League Baseball is ending spring training and delaying opening day by at least two weeks.
In the wake of those announcements, the Minnesota Department of Health held a conference call Thursday afternoon which include the next steps to try and prevent the spread of COVID-19, or coronavirus.
Minnesota's Infectious Disease Director Kris Ehresmann says that the state will not be closing schools. "In general, individuals nineteen and under are at lowest risk of Covid-19", said Ehrsmann. "There can be unintended consequences when schools are closed; access to nutrition, a large number of parents need to stay home with their children, and many parents are health care providers."
Ehresmann added, "We are asking schools to start taking stepts to practice social distancing."
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Minnesota rose from five on Wednesday to nine on Thursday.
That means schedules for lunch or recess may be shifted to keep kids seperated. The health department is saying everyone should try and stay at least six feet apart to avoid spreading the virus.
RELATED: Minnesota Hospitals prepare for an influx of patients.
The Health Department is moving into what they're calling the community mitigation phase of the response while they still work to quarantine individuals who have been exposed.
Everyone can help prevent the spread of #COVID19. Call your doctor if you develop symptoms, have been in close contact with a person known to have COVID-19, or have recently traveled from an area with widespread or ongoing community spread of COVID-19. https://t.co/ehL8kmRHaN. pic.twitter.com/KwrKO7VNub
— CDC (@CDCgov) March 10, 2020"Up until now, we've been focused on ill people staying home, and that's still our message," Ehrsmann says. "However, moving forward we'll be making decisions that will affect all of our lives, even if we're healthy. That means doing things that minimize spread of disease, and to protect those around us in our community who are most vulnerable."
Ehresmann also added that people should not expect these preventative measures to be short term. "This will have an impact on us, but I think that we can do it in a manner that is as positive as possible."
