Oct. 22
We wake up with frost pretty much everywhere, but we'll see mostly cloudy skies in the morning that clear as the day goes on. Highs in the upper 40s. | |
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- White Earth Tribal Chairman Michael Fairbanks was given a coronavirus vaccine back in February by Sarah Snetsinger, an RN from the White Earth Home Health department. Photo courtesy of Anishinaabeg Today
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By Dan Kraker
When vaccines for COVID-19 first became available early this year, Minnesota's tribal communities were quick to make them available to their members. One of the first to get vaccinated was White Earth chair Michael Fairbanks.
He’s 58 and in pretty good health, so he was surprised last week when he tested positive for COVID-19. He got the news at a tough time. Three of his friends from the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe had recently passed away from complications of COVID.
"It scared me, you know, put a shockwave through my whole body that, dang, you know I don't want to get sick like they did and end up heading out, you know," Fairbanks said.
Fairbanks believes case numbers are rising in Indian Country because after months of following public health recommendations to mask, socially distance and avoid crowds, people have let their guard down.
Over the past month Native Americans have contracted COVID-19 at two to three times the rate of white Minnesotans, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. | |
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- CDC backs boosters of Moderna, J&J: A panel advising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved the rollout of boosters for the two vaccines and also endorsed a mix-and-match approach that would be flexible for patients and health care providers. The announcement Thursday is in line with the FDA's authorizations issued Wednesday.
- Minn. teachers ask for COVID protocols: Members of Minnesota's teachers union are calling on school leaders to do more to protect students and staff after the state Department of Health reported the first student death from COVID-19 this school year.
- Ex-cop Noor set for June release after resentencing: A Hennepin County judge on Thursday gave ex-Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor nearly five years in prison, the maximum for second-degree manslaughter, after the Minnesota Supreme Court last month overturned his murder conviction.
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