Star Tribune
How to stay safe with COVID, flu and other viruses rising over holidays
Cases of COVID-19, the flu and other respiratory viruses are rising just as the holiday season peaks, but health experts say some familiar practices can help reduce the chances of getting ill.
Data released Thursday by the Minnesota Department of Health showed the hospitalization rates for COVID-19 increased but still were substantially lower than they were during the pandemic two years ago. Hospitalization rates for the flu also increased, while rates for RSV declined.
“We are seeing an increase in respiratory viral illness right now, as we normally do,” said Melissa McMahon, senior epidemiologist for the state Department of Health. “This is the time of year when we start to see all that pick up.”
How can people stay safe?
The same behaviors that people practiced during the pandemic can reduce the risk of contracting an illness in the next few weeks, when large gatherings make it easier for viruses to spread.
“The main risk is in exposing either people who are unvaccinated or who are otherwise at higher risk, so babies, pregnant people and older folks,” said Dr. Hannah Lichtsinn, an internist and pediatrician at Hennepin Healthcare’s downtown campus.
“If people’s priority is to be healthy and able to attend their family gatherings in the next week, it’s a great idea to avoid any other high-risk exposures,” Lichtsinn said. “You don’t have to self-isolate completely at home, but if you’re going out with a group of people and you know someone has the sniffles, maybe sit that event out.”
And if you’re going to an area with crowds, Lichtsinn also suggests wearing a mask.
McMahon stresses the importance of handwashing: “It sounds like a simple thing, but it helps so much.” If you’re having a gathering at your home, experts recommend using a disinfectant to clean surfaces that people are likely to touch, including countertops and doorknobs.
What about vaccines?
COVID-19 and flu vaccines are available for the general population. People at higher risk, such as young children or people 60 and older, also may qualify for an RSV vaccine.
Not everyone who’s eligible has been getting the shots. New data released this week by the Department of Health showed that less than 1 million Minnesotans, just under 18% of the population, were considered up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccines.
It typically takes up to two weeks for people to obtain the full protection of a vaccine. So if you’re just now getting your shots “you may not have full protection over the holidays, but you will in the next coming weeks when we tend to see respiratory viruses increase even more,” McMahon said.
What if people do get sick?
Health experts say people should stay home when they’re feeling sick.
“Nobody wants to miss a holiday but nobody also wants to make friends and family ill,” McMahon said. “It is the better choice, if you’re ill, to send your regards from home where you’re safe and not spreading illness.”
Doctors recommend being especially cautious with infants, who can’t get some vaccines until they’re 6 months old. Lichtsinn suggests that any child younger than 1 who has a fever or symptoms of a respiratory infection should be examined by a medical professional. People who are older, have chronic health conditions or are immune-compromised also should contact a doctor, in part to see if they might qualify for medications that could help avoid hospitalization.
Two men are dead and one woman was injured in a shooting at a homeless encampment in south Minneapolis on Sunday afternoon, police said. It was the second shooting at a Minneapolis encampment this weekend.
At about 2:20 p.m. Sunday, police responded to a reported shooting in the 4400 block of Snelling Avenue near the railroad tracks at the small encampment between Snelling and Hiawatha avenues. At the scene, officers found two men with fatal gunshot wounds, said Sgt. Garrett Parten Minneapolis Police spokesman. Responders rendered aid, but both men died at the scene.
A woman was found at the scene with life-threatening injuries and was taken to a local hospital where she was being treated Sunday night, he said. Police have yet to say whether the three were living at the encampment.
Officers detained three people, who Parten said have since been released after police found they were not believed to be involved in the shooting. No suspects had been identified as of 6:30 p.m. Sunday.
The shooting is the second at a southside homeless encampment this weekend. One man died and two were critically injured early Saturday at an encampment shooting near E. 21st Street and 15th Avenue S. On Sunday, the man was identified as Deven Leonard Caston, 31, according to the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office.
“We don’t know if there’s a connection between this homeless encampment shooting and the one that occurred yesterday,” Parten said on Sunday. “That is a consideration of the investigation. We can’t rule it out.”
Ward 12 Council Member Aurin Chowdhury, who represents the area and lives nearby, was at the site of the shooting Sunday afternoon. She said officials need information about what happened to better understand how to address situations like this long-term.
“This is an absolute tragedy, and this type of violence should never occur within our city,” she said. “It really makes me think about how we need to look at this more systemically and not just take a whack-a-mole approach and expect the problem to go away.
During Sunday’s Twitch stream, Walz and Ocasio-Cortez played Madden while discussing making homebuying more accessible, building affordable housing, eliminating student loan debt and raising the federal minimum wage.
After the match, Walz showed off his Sega skills in a round of “Crazy Taxi,” the Y2K-era racing game where gamers play as a taxi driver picking up passengers and taking them to their destination for cash.
Walz called himself a “first-generation gamer” and recalled playing “Crazy Taxi” when he bought a Sega Dreamcast. He also mentioned the Minnesota Star Tribune’s coverage of how his old game console was sold and ended up with a Plymouth resident, who still has it.
Afterward, Walz and Ocasio-Cortez watched a short clip of Trump denying on Rogan’s podcast that he lost the 2020 presidential election. Democrat Joe Biden won that year.
Ocasio-Cortez during the livestream also showed viewers her farm on the cozy, indie game Stardew Valley. Walz said the game reminded him of Minnesota: “You’ve got mining,” he said. “You’ve got agriculture. You’ve got snow.”
Before Walz headed out to a rally in Nevada, he pleaded with viewers to vote. More than 12,000 viewers tuned into the livestream on Ocasio-Cortez’s Twitch channel. More watched from Harris’ channel.
”Hey guys, they’re now scrambling and trying to call us Nazis and fascists,” said Alina Habba, one of Trump’s attorneys, who draped a sparkly ”MAGA” jacket over the lectern as she spoke. ”And you know what they’re claiming, guys? It’s very scary. They’re claiming we’re going to go after them and try and put them in jail. Well, ain’t that rich?”
Declared Hogan in his characteristic raspy growl: ”I don’t see no stinkin’ Nazis in here.”
Trump has denounced the four criminal indictments brought against him as politically motivated. He has ramped up his denunciations in recent weeks of ”enemies from within,” naming domestic political rivals, and suggested he would use the military to go after them. Harris, in turn, has called Trump a ”fascist.”
The arena was full hours before Trump was scheduled to speak. Outside the arena, the sidewalks were overflowing with Trump supporters in red ”Make America Great Again” hats. There was a heavy security presence. Streets were blocked off and access to Penn Station was restricted.
In the crowd was Philip D’Agostino, a longtime Trump backer from Queens, the borough where Trump grew up. The 64-year-old said it was appropriate for Trump to be speaking at a place bills itself as ”the world’s most famous arena.”
”It just goes to show ya that he has a bigger following of any man that has ever lived,” D’Agostino said.
