Montana adds 209 new COVID-19 cases, 73,259 fully vaccinated

Montana reported 209 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, and two more of its residents have died due to the respiratory virus.

The deaths added to the state’s virus mapping and tracking map occurred in Cascade and Yellowstone counties, and bring the total since the start of the pandemic to 1,348. Information for the map is update by the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services.

More than 65 million doses of one of two available COVID-19 vaccines have been administered nationwide since the vaccine rollout began in December 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On Wednesday, the Associated Press reported that a single-dose vaccine from Johnson & Johnson could be days away from approval by the Food and Drug Administration.

The number of Montana residents fully immunized has reached 73,259. Over 60% of the staff and residents at nursing homes and assisted living facilities have received their second COVID-19 vaccine dose to become completely inoculated, according to an update Monday from the state DPHHS. Long-term care and assisted living facilities have accounted for just over 5,600 positive cases since March 2020.

Hospitalization due to COVID-19 increased, according to the latest snapshot report from DPHHS, going from 85 people Monday to 97 by Tuesday. The report showed nine of Montana’s 10 largest hospitals were treating at least one COVID-19 patient, while five had between 70% and 90% of their beds occupied. St. Vincent Healthcare and Billings Clinic, both located in the medical hub of Yellowstone County, had 30 COVID-19 patients in their beds as of Tuesday.

Of the 99,242 Montana residents who have tested positive for COVID-19, 96,040 have recovered, meeting the standards set by the CDC for an individual to safely leave isolation. That does not necessarily mean that symptoms of the virus, such as fatigue and loss of taste and smell, do not still linger.

The state completed 3,437 new tests for COVID-19 on Wednesday for a total of 1,056,170 since the spring of last year.

Counties added the following number of cases Friday:

• Gallatin County with 54 cases (262 active)
• Yellowstone County with 38 cases (535 active)
• Silver Bow County with 24 cases (85 active)
• Missoula County with 14 cases (118 active)
• Ravalli County with 13 cases (74 active)
• Flathead County with 12 cases (182 active)
• Lewis and Clark County with 12 cases (108 active)
• Park County with 10 cases (68 active)
• Lake County with six cases (49 active)
• Cascade County with four cases (41 active)
• Valley County with four cases (13 active)
• Lincoln County with three cases (26 active)
• Roosevelt County with three cases (29 active)
• Custer County with two cases (four active)
• Beaverhead County with one case (seven active)
• Daniels County with one case (three active)
• Fallon County with one case (one active)
• Hill County with one case (18 active)
• Madison County with one case (23 active)
• Mineral County with one case (10 active)
• Powder River County with one cases (one active)
• Rosebud County with one cases (six active)
• Sweet Grass County with one case (eight active)
• Wheatland County with one case (six active)

This article has been correctly to accurately reflect the number of positive COVID-19 cases associated with nursing homes and long-term care facilities in Montana. 

This article originally ran on billingsgazette.com.