Pine Knot News - A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news

The availability of hospital beds is also an issue locally, particularly for transfers to larger hospitals, said Community Memorial Hospital CEO Rick Breuer. “It’s hard to find open beds in Duluth for anything,” he said. Beds at CMH have been full... Full story

Minnesota’s current Covid-19 surge won’t relent. The newest data show the disease still firmly entrenched in the state. While a jump in testing can explain much of the latest increase in case counts, the numbers also show the current wave stu... Full story

The latest data for Carlton County show the number of Covid cases is still going up, but at a lower rate, according to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cases in Carlton County increased by 84 from Sept. 15 to 22, but the CDC s... Full story

Youth from across the state joined a virtual town hall with medical professionals to engage with peers about Covid-19 Monday afternoon. The town hall was led by student leaders to give students an opportunity to discuss how the pandemic has impacted... Full story

The drug REGEN- COV, a monoclonal antibody therapy used in treatment of Covid- 19 infection and post- exposure preventive treatment, is available at Community Memorial Hospital. The drug is indicated for use in adult patients or pediatric patients 12... Full story

The state of Minnesota is adding more Covid- 19 testing sites to meet a resurgent demand. Early in the summer the state had closed some of its community testing sites as fewer people were seeking tests. But rising case counts driven by the more-... Full story

With Covid-19 infections ramping up but no state of emergency in Minnesota or nationally, decisions on how to keep kids safe at school this fall have been left up to local school boards. It hasn’t been easy. Masks have become controversial, with s... Full story

With Covid-19 cases still rising, Carlton County Public Health and others are bringing the vaccinations to the people. On Wednesday night, there were clinics at school open house events in Wrenshall and Barnum. They’re working on a clinic in B... Full story

Pine Knot News Over the past 20 days, the number of Covid-19 cases in Carlton County has increased by 141, while the number of deaths due to Covid went up by one. The Cloquet zip code showed the largest increase in number of cases in the Aug. 19... Full story

I don’t know about you, but this week’s news about our county’s rise in cases really hit me hard. I have been “Covid careful” for at least 16 months. I have been cautiously optimistic that “Minnesota Nice” would make us all realize our personal role... Full story

Brian Bakst MPR News Demand is high in Minnesota for $100 vaccine incentives, prompting the state to set aside even more money for the program. As of early Tuesday, more than 30,000 people had already applied for the bonus for getting an initial...  Website

What health and safety guidelines should schools be following? Minnesota schools are no longer under a mandate to require masking in their buildings. That’s because Gov. Tim Walz’s authority to issue this mandate expired now that Minnesota is no lon...  Website

After a summer of no mandates — only recommendations — and declining numbers of Covid-19 infections as more and more people were vaccinated, rising cases of the virus have officials worried about another wave of infections. The next wave in the Nor... Full story

Covid-19 cases are on the rise again in Minnesota and across the country, but with most restrictions lifted and Gov. Tim Walz’s emergency powers gone, the response to this latest spike is in the hands of local leaders and businesses. The number of Co...  Website

While Minnesota’s current upswing in Covid-19 is relatively mild compared to earlier surges, state officials are warning that the pandemic is not over yet and that those who are not vaccinated are especially vulnerable to a rapidly growing variant o...  Website

From Friday to Monday, July 26, Carlton County saw one newly reported probable Covid case, bringing the total cumulative cases to 3,569 as of Tuesday’s report. According to the most recent report from the Minnesota Department of Health, issued J... Full story

Carlton County will hold its next vaccination clinic at the Carlton County Community Services Building in downtown Cloquet from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, July 13. Those age 18 or older can pre-register or just walk in for a free Johnson & Johnson... Full story

Minnesota’s pandemic picture continues to improve rapidly in the early days of June. Wednesday’s data shows new and active Covid-19 caseloads falling to levels not seen since April of last year. Only 128 new cases were added, with no new deaths. (Lat...  Website

For more than a year, Minnesota has been operating under some level of restrictions, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. But soon, most of those restrictions will be lifted. Gov. Tim Walz last week unveiled a three-step process to remove most Covid-19... Full story

Active cases and hospitalizations are ebbing in Minnesota, but the vaccination pace remains at a relative crawl even as state public health leaders plead with unvaccinated adults to get their shots. More than 60 percent of state residents 16 and olde... Full story