Guidance Library: COVID-19
List of guidance documents available for COVID-19 response.
On this page:
Businesses / employers
Schools, child care, and higher education
Community
Facemasks and PPE
Health Care
Contact us
Businesses / employers
- Food Safety during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Compilation of resources from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA), and other state and national agencies. Includes guidelines for the meatpacking industry.
- CDC: Workplaces and Businesses
Schools, child care, and higher education
The COVID-19 Decision Tree for Schools and Child Care has been retired and is replaced by the isolation and quarantine guides below. These guides reflect current CDC recommendations regarding when to isolate and quarantine and for how long depending on a person's ability to wear a mask consistently.
- COVID-19 Isolation Guide for Schools, Child Care, and Youth Programming (PDF)
For people who are sick or test positive.
3/15/22
- COVID-19 Quarantine Guide for Schools, Child Care, and Youth Programming (PDF)
For people who are in close contact (exposed) to a person with COVID-19.
3/15/22
- Best Practices for Handling a Confirmed Case of COVID-19 (PDF)
Information for schools, child care, youth programs, and camps.
Updated 3/1/22
- Best Practice Recommendations for COVID-19 Prevention in Schools for the 2021-22 School Year (PDF)
Strategies to reduce transmission of COVID-19. Using these best practice prevention strategies consistently protects students, teachers, staff, and other members of their households and creates a safer in-person environment.
Updated 3/10/22
- Recommendations for Infection Prevention and Control Practices for Delivering Direct Student Support Services (PDF)
This document provides strongly recommended practices to school staff on the type of protective equipment that will be needed to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission when delivering direct student support services.
Updated 3/24/22
- Recommendations for Providing Support to Students in Their Homes (PDF)
This document outlines recommendations for school district staff providing in-home services to meet individual student needs.
Updated 1/24/22
- Ventilation Guidance for Schools: COVID-19
Information for school administrators and facilities managers who are responsible for ventilation in buildings.
- CDC: Schools, Child Care, and Colleges
Institutes of higher education
- COVID-19 Response Toolkit for Institutions of Higher Education (PDF)
This guidance document includes recommendations and resources to aid in responding to COVID-19 cases and outbreaks on campus.
5/2/22 - Occupational Health and Safety Resources Related to COVID-19
- CDC: Guidance for Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs)
Community
- Indoor Air Considerations: COVID-19
General considerations for air flow, ventilation, circulation, and more.
Updated 1/22/21
Music, camps, and youth programs
- Recommendations for Music Activities and Performances During COVID-19 (PDF)
Updated 6/30/21
- Best Practice Recommendations for COVID-19 Prevention in Youth Programs, Day and Overnight Camps (PDF)
Updated 3/24/22
Community- and faith-based organizations
- COVID-19 Planning Recommendations for Funeral Services and Ceremonies (PDF)
Updated 6/30/21
- Recommendations for Hmong Funerals during COVID-19 (PDF)
Updated 6/30/21 - Mortuary Science
Licensing and regulation of funeral establishments; includes COVID-19 specific guidance.
- CDC: Community Organizations and Gatherings
Congregate living and care facilities
Homeless service providers
- Shelter-in-place Guidance During COVID-19 Surges in Homeless Shelters (PDF)
Updated 3/3/22
- COVID-19 Investigation Toolkit for Homeless and Other Congregate Settings (PDF)
Updated 4/4/22
- CDC: Homeless Populations
Jails and correctional settings
- COVID-19 Vaccine Facts in Correctional Facilities (PDF)
Updated 3/28/22
- COVID-19 Investigational Toolkit for Correctional Settings (PDF)
Updated 4/4/22
- CDC: Correctional and Detention Facilities
DHS licensed residential and nonresidential settings
- Recommended Protective Actions in Residential and Nonresidential Settings Licensed by DHS (PDF)
Updated 4/8/22
Adult day centers and day service facilities
Home and community based community residential settings
- CDC: Guidance for Group Homes for Individuals with Disabilities
- CDC: Guidance for Direct Service Providers
Intermediate care facilities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ICF-IID)
- CMS: Policy and Memos to States and Regions
- CDC: Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Healthcare Personnel During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic
Facemasks and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
- Masks: COVID-19
What everyone should know about wearing masks in public.
- COVID-19 PPE and Source Control Grids (PDF)
For congregate care settings, by community transmission level.
Updated 4/7/22 - Crisis Standards of Care: Personal Protective Equipment
Includes COVID-19 PPE recommendations and resources.
- CDC: Use of Masks to Slow the Spread of COVID-19
Health Care
- COVID-19 and Dental Care
When to see a dentist and what counts as a dental emergency.
- Health Care Worker Isolation and Quarantine Recommendations
Protocols for isolation and quarantine of health care workers during conventional, contingency, and crisis staffing situations.
- Defining Crisis Staffing Shortage in Congregate Care Facilities
Crisis-level staffing criteria, strategies, and guidelines for congregate care facilities.
- Guidance for Temporary Plastic Barriers in Health Care Settings
12/18/20
- Information for Organizations Requesting Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag Card
- Information for Organizations Requesting Cue Rapid Molecular Tests
- Ivermectin and COVID-19 (PDF)
Information for health care organizations and providers.
4/20/22
- Prescribing Antibiotics in Outpatient Settings during the COVID-19 Pandemic (PDF)
4/9/21
- Best Practices for COVID-19 Testing and Vaccination Sites: Disability-related Accessibility
Infection prevention and control
- Aerosol-Generating Procedures and Patients with Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19 (PDF)
Updated 4/12/22
Long-term care
- Resident Cohorts for Respiratory Outbreaks in Long-term Care (PDF)
Updated 2/17/22
- Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and Fan Considerations for Long-term Care during COVID-19 (PDF)
5/19/21
- Vaccine Provider Models for COVID-19 Vaccination Efforts in Minnesota Long-term Care Facilities (PDF)
Updated 9/8/21
- Long-term Care COVID-19 Booster Vaccination Plan (PDF)
Proposed COVID-19 booster distribution and administration plan for LTC facilities. Includes COVID-19 Vaccine Dose Tracker template.
Updated 11/10/21
- Long-term Care Using MIIC to Query COVID-19 Vaccination Status (PDF)
11/10/21
- Long-term Care COVID-19 Vaccine Resources (PDF)
Updated 3/31/21
- How to Complete the Long-term Care COVID-19 Vaccination Reporting Form (PDF)
Updated 5/26/21 - COVID-19 Guidance: Long-term Care Indoor Visitation for Nursing Facilities and Assisted Living Settings (PDF)
Updated 12/29/21
- Guidance for Congregate Living Settings: Placing Resident-requested Electronic Monitoring Devices (PDF)
Updated 2/9/21
Previously called Guidance for Congregate Living Settings to Assist Residents Requesting Camera Placement.
Health care facilities and systems
- Access to Support in Hospital Settings: Patients with Disabilities and Pediatric Patients (PDF)
Updated 3/2/21
- Vaccination During COVID-19
Addresses the importance of continuing routine vaccination during the pandemic.
- CDC: Healthcare Workers: Information on COVID-19
Clinical care, vaccine, infection control, settings, operations, guidance, and research.
- CDC: Information for Laboratories about Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Contact us
- IDEPC Comment Form
Use this form to contact the Minnesota Department of Health for questions or comments about health related issues or this web page. - Contact the State of Minnesota
Use this contact form for questions or comments related to businesses and employment or other non-health related issues.