Montana Reported COVID Cases Up 20.5% Over Previous Week
COVID prevalence in Montana wastewater nearly twice the national average
By Denise Rivette
The reported rates of COVID-19 rose this week in Montana. On Friday, August 16, the Montana Department of Health and Human Services reported 557 COVID cases, a 20.5% increase of 95 cases compared to the 462 cases reported the previous Friday.
While the most predominent strains are the new FLiRT variants which are highly transmissible, so far they have produced milder symptoms in most people.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been tracking the prevalence of COVID in wastewater around the country. There are six sites in Montana where the wastewater is being tracked. Below is the CDC chart tracking the prevalence of COVID in Montana wastewater for the last 12 months. Montana’s latest reported COVID viral activity is almost 16.
This week’s reported results from wastewater monitoring around the country show that in most states the levels of COVID found in wastewater is high to very high. Nationally, COVID viral activity in wastewater rose to 8.82 on August 10, less than the peak of 9.56 in July 2022. Before it started rising again in May, it was at 1.36. The CDC says the most recent data is incomplete and may change. “Currently, the COVID-19 wastewater viral activity level is very high nationally, with the highest levels in the Western U.S. region,” Dr. Jonathan Yoder, Deputy Director of the CDC’s Wastewater Surveillance Program, said in an email as reported by CNN. “This year’s COVID-19 wave is coming earlier than last year, which occurred in late August/early September.”
Below is a screenshot from the CDC website.
New COVID guidelines from the CDC align with those of other endemic respiratory viruses and advise that people who test positive stay home and stay away from others (including those in the same household). According to the CDC, after testing positive you can resume normal activities when both of the following statements have been true for at least 24 hours:
Your symptoms are getting better overall; and
You do not have a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication)
When returning to your normal activities, you should take added precautions over the next five days, such as masking, physical distancing and testing.
KFF Health News has produced a slide show with information including the new CDC guidelines. You can see the slideshow HERE.