Tag: Gov. Walz

Gov. Walz and Lt. Flanagan Update: December 11, 2020

Minnesota is Ready for COVID-19 Vaccine

On Tuesday, Governor Walz announced that Minnesota is ready to receive and distribute a vaccine effectively, safely, and equitably at the moment it is made available to states.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Walz has been committed to transparency and accountability, bringing Minnesotans along with him every step of the way as we learn how best to weather this storm. And the vaccine distribution plan distribution plan is no different.

“There are a number of factors outside of our state government control when it comes to getting the vaccine to Minnesotans, including the federal government’s national guidelines on distribution and the supply of the vaccine,” said Governor Walz. “But in Minnesota, we are ready for the vaccine at the moment it becomes available. Our infrastructure is set and our plans are ready to execute. Until then, we need to stay patient, remain hopeful, and keep up the fight.”

Continue reading “Gov. Walz and Lt. Flanagan Update: December 11, 2020”

Governor and Lawmakers continue to work on COVID Relief Package

Governor Tim Walz and lawmakers continue negotiations on a relief package for bars and restaurants that remain closed due to the governor’s COVID emergency order.   Walz said Friday he thinks they’re getting close to a deal:

“Us starting out and saying, this is where we think we should go and these are the principles. Then there’s of course the House Democratic version, the House Republican version, the Senate Republican version, the Senate Democratic version.   And now we’re at the point right now where those kind of four corners are working out.”

If Walz and lawmakers are able to agree on a relief package, it doesn’t look like the legislature would pass it until mid-December, when legislators are back in Saint Paul anyway to vote on the governor’s emergency powers. View the post here.

Gov. Tim Walz urges mask-wearing as bridge to vaccine

Mask use rises; details about vaccines, shutdown expected this week. 

Gov. Tim Walz is urging Minnesotans to stick with mask-wearing as the constant in the state’s COVID-19 response, even as other strategies change against a pandemic that now has caused more than 4,000 deaths statewide.

The governor thanked Minnesotans on Monday for a recent hike in mask-wearing, based on survey data, and said it should be a bridge for the state to a COVID-19 vaccine.

“It makes sense to everyone, being this close to a vaccine, to try and reduce those infections the best we can,” he said. Continue reading.

Gov. Walz and Lt. Gov. Flanagan Update: November 25, 2020


Governor Walz Outlines COVID-19 Economic Relief Package

On Tuesday, Governor Walz announced a COVID-19 economic relief package to keep businesses afloat, support workers struggling to get by, and help Minnesota families keep food on the table. Governor Walz will work with legislators on both sides of the aisle to move forward this much-needed proposal, integrate additional proposals, and call a special session when an agreement is final.

Continue reading “Gov. Walz and Lt. Gov. Flanagan Update: November 25, 2020”

Statement from Speaker Hortman and Majority Leader Winkler on COVID Economic Relief Package

House DFL logo

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and Majority Leader Ryan Winkler released the following statements on COVID-19 economic relief legislation:

“The burden of protecting Minnesotans from the spread of COVID-19 has hit some businesses and workers harder than others. While we join state leaders across the country in urging federal action to provide economic relief as soon as possible, we are working as quickly as we can on state measures to provide additional assistance,” said Speaker Hortman. “We need to work together to help those struggling during this tough time, and then turn our attention in the 2021 Session to rebuilding Minnesota’s economy in the wake of this pandemic.”

“The public health guidelines and restrictions in place are needed and saving lives, but hurting an important segment of businesses and our economy. The state needs to take action,” said Majority Leader Winkler. “We have seen a pattern with many COVID efforts from the federal government — corporations, the wealthy, and well-connected have been the biggest beneficiaries of federal aid, while working families have to make do with what’s left. We have to do better in Minnesota. With strong investments in unemployment insurance and other programs that aid low-income families, we can help those who are struggling the most. We are ready to work with our Republican colleagues to provide relief as soon as possible for both workers and businesses.”

The COVID-19 relief package from House DFLers and Governor Walz includes critical measures to: 

  • Keep Small Businesses Afloat 
    • Provide direct aid to businesses through Business Assistance Program 
    • Waive State and regulatory fees for bars, restaurants, event centers, craft breweries, and more
    • Establish eviction moratorium so small businesses can stay in their locations
  • Support Workers Struggling to Get By
    • Extend unemployment benefits for an additional 13 weeks, helping as many as 100,000 workers whose benefits currently end late December
    • Provide a $500 one-time emergency payment to struggling families
  • Help Minnesota Families Put Food on the Table
    • Establish one-time grant to restaurants to provide food for healthcare workers, homeless shelters, and long-term care facilities
    • Provide a tax credit for businesses that donate food that would otherwise spoil or be thrown away 

‘No beds anywhere’: Minnesota hospitals strained to limit by COVID-19

Open ICU beds were down to single digits in some parts of Minnesota last week, when Gov. Tim Walz ordered a four-week shutdown of bars and other venues. 

One walk through Regions Hospital’s COVID-19 intensive care unit reveals the scope of the medical crisis emerging from a fast-spreading pandemic.

Sixteen sliding glass doors are all closed, and behind each lies a patient struggling to breathe. Almost all are on ventilators because their lungs are too weak to work on their own. Clear tubes carry oxygen into their throats and chests, which mechanically rise and fall as their bodies lie still.

On this Thursday morning, 28 COVID-19 patients are in intensive care, with 12 spilling beyond the designated unit to areas designed for heart problems, strokes and surgical recoveries. A total of 97 COVID-19 patients have been admitted to Regions, which is almost full. Continue reading.

Gov. Walz and Lt. Gov. Flanagan Update: November 21, 2020

Governor Walz Announces Four-Week Dial Back to Control Spread of COVID-19


Throughout this pandemic, the Walz-Flanagan Administration has followed the data on who, when, and where the virus is spreading. Now, that data is moving rapidly and so must Minnesota. As cases skyrocket, the “who” is all of us. The “when” is all the time. And the “where” is what we’re focusing on now.

Continue reading “Gov. Walz and Lt. Gov. Flanagan Update: November 21, 2020”

‘Help us’: Doctors implore Minnesotans to follow virus rules

Doctors urged Minnesotans on Thursday to take COVID-19 seriously and to comply with new restrictions that take effect Friday night as they provided dramatic accounts of how the state’s health care system — especially its health care workers — is at a breaking point.

Dr. Carolyn McClain, an emergency physician at Twin Cities hospitals, said the pandemic has been one of the hardest times of her life. She worked in Haiti after the catastrophic earthquake of 2010 but said that she could at least go home after that.

“This is my home, and I am watching people die,” McClain told reporters at a briefing with Gov. Tim Walz and other doctors. “And that is hard. and it’s been going on for a long time.” Continue reading.

What you need to know about Minnesota’s COVID-19 restrictions

The governor has implemented everything from mask mandates to caps on gatherings to slow the spread of COVID-19. 

Since March, Gov. Tim Walz has issued sweeping executive orders to slow the spread of coronavirus in the state, from business and school closures to a statewide mask mandate required in public indoor spaces and businesses in Minnesota. 

The governor has started to slowly ease restrictions on businesses, schools and Minnesotans’ movements during the public health crisis, but he’s not yet ordered a full reopening of the state. (This FAQ was updated Nov. 18.)

What does Walz’s order say?

The governor let his stay-at-home order — which went into effect on March 28 — expire on May 18. That original order directed Minnesotans to stay home except for essential needs and services or if they worked in critical sectors. Continue reading.

As virus cases surge, Republicans let Walz keep powers without a fight

ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA. (FOX 9) – As the coronavirus surges in Minnesota, Republican lawmakers let Gov. Tim Walz keep his emergency powers without a fight during Thursday’s unprecedented sixth special session of 2020.

More than 60 percent of senators decided to vote from home Thursday. Republican Sen. Dave Senjem told FOX 9 he tested positive over the weekend after developing a slight cough, and was isolating at home in Rochester but feeling better. 

Senjem said he attended Senate Republicans’ leadership election last Thursday before feeling symptoms. He said he likely got the virus before that, while campaigning in his district last week. Continue reading.