Montana reported 180 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, while the number of residents considered fully vaccinated has surpassed 220,000.
The number of confirmed active cases in Montana was at 946 on Wednesday morning, according to the latest update to the state’s virus mapping and tracking website. Data from the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services had the death toll in the state at 1,489 Montanans, following death record reconciliation between local county health officials and DPHHS.
Nine of the deaths reported Wednesday were residents of Flathead County, bringing the county’s total since the start of the pandemic to 91 people. However, all nine were confirmed following a review of death records that date from October of last year through March, according to Flathead County Health Officer Joe Russell.
“These reconciliations are problematic…because we’re not giving the community a good picture of where we are now,” Russell told the Gazette.