On Mar. 13, 2023, Mayo Clinic published a study that showed the COVID-19 pandemic was linked to a 17% increase in the death rate in Minnesota during the first year of the pandemic compared to the two previous years. COVID-19 caused or contributed to almost 10% of all Minnesota deaths in 2020. Social isolation was a major cause of these deaths, especially among older people in rural areas.

Researchers identified a 68% increase in assault by firearms, a 49% increase in accidental poisonings, a 48% increase in malnutrition and a 25% increase in liver disease.