FAIRMONT — Mayo Clinic Health System in Minnesota announced Tuesday that it will begin to resume elective visits, procedures and surgeries on Monday.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz decided Tuesday to allow health care providers to take such action.

In March, Mayo locations in Minnesota deferred all elective care in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time, initial modeling projected a surge that would exceed capacity for hospital and intensive care unit beds and ventilators. Mayo also had a limited amount of personal protective equipment and testing capabilities.

Mayo said that upon careful review of patient needs and its practice, it chose to resume elective visits.

“Many patients have needed to defer care over the past several weeks because of the pandemic,” says Dr. James Hebl, regional vice president, Southwest Minnesota, Mayo Clinic Health System. “However, now that Gov. Walz has announced that health care providers may proceed with elective care, we are ready to fully resume our practice. Mayo Clinic Health System has implemented numerous safety measures to keep patients and staff safe, including universal masking, robust patient screening protocols and enhanced cleaning procedures. It is safe to receive care on our campuses.”