Students at Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City Elementary School were among an estimated 50,000 Minnesota first-graders to receive dental health kits and educational materials through the program.
As the Omicron variant of the coronavirus continues to recede, the number of cases of COVID-19 has dropped dramatically statewide and in west central Minnesota. Two months ago, the number of daily new cases topped 10,000. Friday, fewer than 500 new cases were reported.
The total of newly reported COVID-19 cases in 11 west central Minnesota counties fell below 100 this week, and only two deaths were reported. Only two of the 11 counties reported new cases in each of the five days of state reports.
The number of cases reported each day in the state has fallen from more than 11,000 a day two months ago and more than 5,000 a day a month ago. Friday, the state reported 583 new cases. Hospitalization numbers have also decreased.
The state continues to see the number of new COVID-19 cases and deaths drop in recent weeks. Hospitalizations for COVID-19 have fallen to levels not seen since August.