New figures from the Minnesota Department of Health show more than 60% of the state's residents have now received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
Meanwhile, health officials are trying various strategies to boost vaccination numbers closer to the 70% needed for canceling the statewide mask mandate.
Vaccination "pop-ups" are being offered to bring in certain populations that might face barriers to getting a shot. At Minneapolis' iconic First Avenue nightclub, Marketing Director Ashley Ryan says 15-hundred people signed up for today's pop-up event.
"We have the space. We have the need. Especially in this industry - people in the arts, people in music. They don't necessarily always have flexibility and jobs where they can take time off easily," said Ryan.
Ryan says the venue, which will remain mostly-idled for several weeks until national touring acts are booking shows again, was the perfect fit for right now.
'What if we did something that was focused a little bit more on the people within our sphere? We reached out to a lot of other arts organizations, theaters, venues, and our staff, and said "Hey-we've got a vaccination clinic and it's for you."
In St. Paul, volunteer health care workers are giving shots at a brewery and rewarding people with a free beer. Duluth's downtown bus depot has been converted into a pop-up vaccination site. This, as health department figures show the pace of vaccinations in Minnesota has slowed to around 14,000 per day, down from roughly 40,000 per day in early April.
