Thursday, April 29
The state has identified 573,938 cases of COVID-19 as of today, with 552,069 of these patients no longer required to be isolated. 7,128 deaths have been reported. For more information on the current situation, visit the Minnesota Department of Health website.
At the bottom of this email, you will find Met Council workforce statistics related to COVID-19 leave that have been reported to the Employee Resource Center.
Do you have thoughts or concerns on the content or frequency of these COVID-19 update emails? We would love to hear your feedback through the online COVID-19 form, so we can make sure these emails are providing the most useful and timely information to staff.
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At a glance
What you need to know this week:
- After a pause this month, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is being administered again for all adults.
- The CDC released new masking guidelines for fully vaccinated people outdoors. No changes at this time to the state's guidelines for Minnesotans, and the Met Council's face coverings procedure remains in effect.
- We are continuing to coordinate with state and county partners to make vaccine appointments directly available to our staff. Reach out to us if you need assistance making an appointment.
- New or expanded vaccination opportunities are highlighted below.
- Reminder: The COVID-19 Leave Request Form has been updated to include instructions for vaccine-related requests, and Metro Transit and Environmental Services have new processes for submitting these requests.
Read on for more about these updates.
Johnson & Johnson vaccine resumes
After being paused for a couple weeks this month, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is being administered again for all adults. The use of the vaccine was paused on April 13 after some cases of an extremely rare type of blood clot were reported in people who had received the vaccine. The pause allowed time for experts to review vaccine safety data, which showed that the benefits of this vaccine outweigh the very small risk.
Providers can begin using the Johnson & Johnson vaccine again once they have reviewed the updated FDA fact sheet for providers and are prepared to provide the updated fact sheet for patients.
The state is continuing to encourage Minnesotans to get whichever vaccine is available to them.
CDC updates outdoor mask guidelines for those fully vaccinated
Earlier this week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued new guidance on outdoor mask use for fully vaccinated Americans. People are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after they receive their final vaccine dose.
Small outdoor gatherings: Fully vaccinated people can now unmask at small outdoor gatherings, or when dining outside with friends from multiple households. Guidance for unvaccinated people remains that they need to wear a mask at such gatherings.
Large outdoor gatherings: If you do attend a crowded outdoor event, wearing a mask is recommended, regardless of vaccination status.
Indoor activities: The CDC's infographic linked below indicates the level of safety associated with different types of indoor activities. Additional guidelines include:
- Masks are recommended in indoor public spaces, regardless of vaccination status.
- Even if you've been vaccinated, you should avoid large indoor gatherings.
- Fully vaccinated people do not need to wear a mask when gathering indoors with smaller groups of fully vaccinated people or with unvaccinated people from a single household who are low risk for severe COVID-19 disease.
Public spaces and transit: Masks are still required in most public settings, including on transit, regardless of vaccination status.
A new CDC infographic (PDF) provides the masking recommendation and risk level for unvaccinated and fully vaccinated people for some common indoor and outdoor activities.
Review the CDC's guidance for fully vaccinated people for more information.
The Minnesota Department of Health's (MDH) mask guidelines for fully vaccinated people do not require a mask when gathering indoors with smaller groups of fully vaccinated people or with unvaccinated people from one other household. MDH recommends continuing to wear a mask in public and avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated spaces regardless of vaccination status. Read more on the MDH website.
The Met Council's face coverings procedure remains fully in effect. Review the policy on MetNet.
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Meeting the needs of staff through external partners
We are continuing to coordinate with state and county partners to make vaccine appointments directly available to our staff. If you still need a vaccine appointment, please email Lisa Belland at Lisa.Belland@metc.state.mn.us so we can make sure you receive our notifications for available appointments through these external partners. Since so many employees have accessed the COVID-19 vaccine through other channels, at this time the Met Council will not be hosting on-site vaccination clinics.
New or expanded vaccination opportunities
State Fair site now taking walk-in appointments
The State Fair Community Vaccination Site is now offering direct appointment scheduling online and walk-ins through Tuesday, May 4. The state is encouraging walk-ins from the targeted zip codes but will accept appointments from any zip code to ensure that no dose gets wasted. Schedule your appointment online, call 833-431-2053, or arrive at the site for a walk-in appointment.
Use Vaccine Connector to directly schedule appointments
Minnesotans can now use the Vaccine Connector to directly schedule vaccine appointments at the state’s COVID-19 Community Vaccination Program locations. These sites are strategically located around the state to give Minnesotans another option to get their vaccine: Saint Paul, Bloomington, Oakdale, Mankato, Duluth, Rochester, Lino Lakes, and St. Cloud.
If all appointments are full, Minnesotans can also sign up to be informed when they are able to book a Community Vaccination Program appointment and be notified about other vaccination opportunities near them. Visit the COVID-19 Vaccine Connector to get an appointment or sign up for updates.
Mall of America site prioritizing teens and their parents
Vaccine appointments are being prioritized for 16- and 17-year-olds and their parents at the Mall of America community vaccination site this week. This push comes as our state is seeing a significant increase in COVID-19 cases, especially among younger Minnesotans. Schedule an appointment now.
Mobile units are on the move
Mobile vaccination units are providing COVID-19 vaccinations to communities throughout the state of Minnesota, helping ensure equitable distribution of vaccines, prioritize vulnerable and underserved communities, and reduce barriers to vaccination by going directly to communities. Metro Transit and the Met Council are part of the partnership behind the units. Read the news release for more on this effort.
Tools to help you find vaccination opportunities
As of Tuesday (April 27), 2,487,282 Minnesotans had received at least one vaccine dose and 1,833,719 people had completed the vaccine series. For up-to-date information on vaccine availability and distribution, visit the Minnesota Department of Health vaccine dashboard.
Every Minnesotan 16 years of age and older is eligible to get a COVID-19 vaccine. The state has directed providers to still prioritize vaccine appointments for people most at risk of getting COVID-19, or those who could develop severe illness if infected. Providers then have the flexibility to provide available appointments to other eligible Minnesotans.
These are some of the tools you can use to find vaccine appointments:
- Sign up for the COVID-19 Vaccine Connector to directly schedule an appointment or get updates on vaccine opportunities and be entered into the random selection process for the state's Community Vaccination Program sites.
- Contact your healthcare provider, local pharmacy, or use the Vaccine Locator Map to search for vaccine providers in your area.
- If you have a HealthPartners medical plan, make sure your contact information in your account is up to date. HealthPartners is contacting eligible patients to schedule a vaccination when they have appointments available. Learn more on the HealthPartners COVID-19 site.
- As part of M Health Fairview’s COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Efforts, they are prioritizing communities of color and indigenous communities that have experienced disproportionately high rates of COVID-19 during the pandemic. For an appointment, register through their COVID-19 Vaccine Screener.
- Go to CDC: VaccineFinder to schedule an appointment for a Pfizer vaccine at a pharmacy near you.
- Make sure you're reading this weekly all-staff COVID-19 email to get the latest on vaccination opportunities, guidelines, and more.
- For more information about the vaccine and how to find an appointment, visit the Minnesota Department of Health vaccine site.
You do not have to wait for information from the Minnesota COVID-19 Vaccine Connector or the Met Council's emergency notification system before getting your shot. If your health care provider contacts you about making an appointment, or if you have another opportunity to get vaccinated, you can and should do that.
For the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines to last longer and be most effective against variants, two shots are required. If you’ve missed your second dose for any reason, get it as soon as possible.
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Continue safe practices and testing to stop the spread of COVID-19
Millions of Minnesotans are still susceptible to COVID-19 infection and the health impacts that can go with it. MDH stresses that it is important to continue to follow all public health guidance to reduce the spread of COVID-19 even after you have been fully vaccinated (two weeks after your final dose). Learn more about the guidelines for fully vaccinated people on the MDH website.
Anyone who is experiencing COVID-19 symptoms should immediately contact their health care provider and seek testing, regardless of their vaccination status. How to get a COVID-19 test:
Reminder: Process changes and updated form for COVID-19 Leave requests
The Employee Resource Center (ERC) is working to respond to a high volume of COVID-19 Leave requests. Human Resources has added temporary additions to the ERC staff and is working with partners in Metro Transit and Environmental Services to quickly approve the use of Emergency Sick Pay for vaccine-related absences.
As a reminder, employees may use a maximum of 24 hours of COVID-19 Leave if they have a reaction to the vaccine and need to take time off, but only if they have Emergency Sick Pay time available. Employees may not use COVID-19 Leave to get a vaccine.
Please follow these instructions for requesting COVID-19 Leave. Note: The COVID-19 Leave Request Form (PDF) was revised last week to include instructions in section 1A for vaccine-related requests.
COVID-19 Leave requests related to the vaccine:
- Metro Transit: Managers and supervisors are asked to send COVID-19 leave requests for vaccine-related absences to John Cook at John.Cook@metrotransit.org.
- Environmental Services: Managers should use this link to request vaccine-related leave only: COVID-19 Leave (ESP) Request for Vaccine Reaction.
- Staff in other divisions: Submit the COVID-19 Leave Request Form for vaccine-related absences to the ERC for processing at EmployeeResourceCenter@metc.state.mn.us.
- When filling out section 1A of the form for vaccine-related requests, you are not required to identify your symptoms.
COVID-19 Leave requests not related to the vaccine:
- Managers, please submit the COVID-19 Leave Request Form to the ERC for processing.
- Please use the updated form (linked above), which was revised to include instructions for vaccine-related leave requests.
The time code for COVID-19 Leave is released to the manager after the leave request is received and approved.
Check the MetNet pages, FAQs
For the most current information related to the COVID-19 outbreak, visit the MetNet page and be sure to review the FAQs for staff and managers. They are updated as we have new information to communicate.
For Metro Transit work instructions and daily updates on new COVID-19 cases reported at each worksite, visit the Metro Transit MetNet page. For job aids and facilities updates for Environmental Services related to COVID-19, visit the Environmental Services page.
If you have questions, talk to your manager or supervisor or submit a question or concern in the online COVID-19 form.
Check out the latest issues of our internal newsletters: April 23 Insights (Transit), April 27 ES Update, and April 29 HR Connect.
For those who cannot easily access MetNet and/or would like a printable PDF of the FAQs, here are the most recent versions of these pages:
Met Council workforce statistics
The following statistics related to COVID-19 have been reported to the Employee Resource Center. The "active positive COVID-19" number is the number of employees who currently have a positive COVID-19 diagnosis. The "cumulative" number marks the total number of employees who received a positive COVID-19 diagnosis since the pandemic began. The second table breaks down the positive cases by division for Community Development (CD), Environmental Services (ES), Metro Transit (MT), Metropolitan Transportation Services (MTS), and Regional Administration (RA).
Employees with positive COVID-19 diagnosis (April 29):
| |
Councilwide |
| Active positive COVID-19 |
46 |
| Cumulative COVID-19 since onset |
506 |
Employees with positive COVID-19 diagnosis by division (April 29*):
*These division numbers are reported weekly. These tables reflect changes week over week.
|
Division
|
New cases |
Total to date |
Returned to work |
Current active |
|
CD
|
0 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
| ES |
0 |
81 |
60 |
21 |
| MT |
3 |
410 |
389 |
21 |
| MTS |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
| RA |
0 |
12 |
9 |
3
|
| Total |
3 |
506 |
460 |
46
|
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