MDH Monitoring COVID-19 Cases in Kids As School Year Approaches

ST. PAUL -- As the Minnesota Department of Education prepares to announce their recommendation for learning this fall, Infectious Disease Director Kris Ehresmann says they have been monitoring the spread of COVID-19 among school age kids.

She says statewide there has been over 6,000 confirmed cases of the virus in kids ages 6-19, however the severity isn't as strong.

Of those 6,003 cases, 127 have been in the hospital and another 129 have been in the ICU. But, while children tend to do much better with COVID it's not without some level of severity.

Ehresmann says while it's believed the virus typically spreads more through adults, they can't 100% rule out transmission from child to child.

The Minnesota Department of Education will announce Thursday whether students will return to the classroom, continue distance learning or do a hybrid model of the two.