As of Thursday, November 5, 2020, Montana reports 36,968 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with the second-highest record number of new coronavirus cases, 1,013, reported in the last day: 176 in Cascade County, 148 in Gallatin County, 120 in Yellowstone County, 90 in Missoula County, 50 in Lewis & Clark County, 35 in Silver Bow County, 32 in Glacier County, 29 new cases in Custer County, 25 in Valley County, 23 new cases in Dawson County, 21 in Roosevelt County, and more new cases in 38 more Montana counties. Statewide, 1,421 people have been hospitalized, and 414 people currently are being treated in Montana hospitals for COVID-19. There are 13,261 active coronavirus cases in Montana. Since Oct. 1, the number of active cases in Montana have nearly tripled. The most active cases are in Yellowstone and Cascade County, and Gallatin County, Lewis & Clark County and Missoula County. 407 people have died in Montana of COVID-19. More than half of all the deaths in Montana caused by COVID-19 occurred in October. More Montanans have died of COVID in just the last week than died of the flu all last year. Nationwide, more than 234,000 Americans have died of COVID-19. There have been 9,580,000 cases of coronavirus in the US, and counting.

The coronavirus pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on Native American communities. The CDC reports that the incidence of COVID-19 cases among American Indians and Alaska Natives was 3.5 times that among White people, and coronavirus infections among American Indians and Alaska Natives were in younger people.

A college student in Indiana died in her dorm room after testing positive for the coronavirus. Bethany Nesbitt, 20, was found dead in a residence hall. The coroner said COVID-19 was a contributing factor in her death. Nesbitt began experiencing Covid-19 symptoms the week before her death and later tested positive for the virus, but she never received the results because of a clerical error. A few days before her death, Nesbitt was taken to the emergency room due to a drop in her oxygen saturation level. An emergency room doctor determined that Bethany very likely had COVID-19, but it was not a severe case and she seemed to be recovering, so Nesbitt returned to her single-room dorm to quarantine. On Oct. 28, she told her family that she had been fever-free for 24 hours and her oxygen levels were normalizing. But two days later, she was found dead in her room.

Gallatin County is reporting record numbers of new coronavirus cases this week. On Monday, Gallatin County reported 226 new coronavirus cases, setting a new record in daily case counts. Health officials are urging residents to take COVID-19 precautions with flu season on the horizon. Gallatin City-County Health Officer Matt Kelley said, “We need help. We need the community to find ways to achieve social distance between themselves and others. And if we can’t do that, we’re going to continue to see these case numbers grow.” The spike in infections is a chain reaction of what is happening throughout the county. As infections continue to rise, there’s a greater risk of having more cases in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, schools and other congregate areas. There are several long-term care facilities with multiple active cases and a growing list of schools that are managing cases. To keep up with the rising cases, the county has had to adjust how it handles contact tracing to have the greatest impact with the resources available, including conducting shorter interviews and reaching fewer contacts to quarantine in order to reach those who are most at risk.

Bozeman’s Chief Joseph Middle School reverted its 8th grade classes to remote learning, becoming the second Bozeman school to move classes to remote learning this week due to COVID-19 cases. A staff member at the school tested positive for COVID-19 and several other staff members were identified as close contacts. Sixth- and seventh-grade students will continue in-person instruction. The school will provide free remote lunches to its students for pickup on its campus from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., or at the Gallatin Valley Food Bank from 1 to 4 p.m.