As of Sunday, July 12, 2020, Montana reports 1,758 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 83 new cases reported in the last day: 55 new cases in Yellowstone County, 4 new cases in Big Horn and Jefferson Counties, 3 new cases in Lake County, 2 new cases in each of Beaverhead, Carbon, Lewis & Clark Counties, Ravalli, and Richland Counties, and 1 new case in each of Broadwater, Fallon, Lincoln, Missoula, Park, Silver Bow, and Teton Counties. Statewide, 128 people have been hospitalized, and 26 people are currently being treated in the hospital for COVID-19. Yellowstone County has had 489 cases so far, surpassing Gallatin County, with 403 cases so far. The most active cases are in Yellowstone County, with 312 active cases. Gallatin County has 163 active cases. 29 people have died in Montana of COVID-19. Nationwide, more than 137,000 Americans have died.

With coronavirus spreading and COVID-19 cases spiking, more states are pivoting back to containment measures. Mississippi’s governor has now made face masks mandatory in 13 of the hardest-hit counties. In Michigan, businesses will deny service to customers without a mask. New Mexico is canceling contact sports at high schools this fall, and banned indoor dining at restaurants. And Nevada ordered bars to close again. Meanwhile, the American Academy of Pediatrics, along with two major teachers unions and a school superintendents organization, warned today against reopening schools this fall.

In Mississippi, an outbreak at the state capitol has grown to 36, including 26 legislators. Many politicians flouted recommendations to wear a mask inside the Capitol in recent weeks. Now, about one in six of Mississippi state lawmakers have tested positive for the coronavirus. Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves is warning the public to get tested if they have been in contact with a state lawmaker. The leaders of both chambers — the Speaker of the House Philip Gunn and the Lt. Gov., the leader in the Senate — have tested positive, as has the chairman of the House Public Health Committee. It is now too dangerous for lawmakers to come back to the capitol within the next two weeks.

In Florida, more than 7,000 children under the age of 18 have tested positive since the pandemic began in March. In June two teenagers who had been hospitalized, a 17-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl, died from COVID-19. Besides the danger of contracting coronavirus and becoming ill or dying or COVID-19, children and teenagers may also be at risk of contracting a rare but serious, sometimes deadly, inflammatory disorder — multi-system inflammatory syndrome. The symptoms may vary and can appear up to a month after a child is infected with coronavirus, including those who were asymptomatic. Multi-system inflammatory syndrome causes swelling that can affect body systems, including the heart, kidneys, brain lungs, skin, eyes, and gastrointestinal organs.

A Whitefish bar, the Great Northern Bar, is temporarily closing after an employee tested positive for COVID-19. In Bozeman, businesses closed because of employees testing positiveor for contact tracing include the Starbucks on Main Street across from the high school, Bozeman Optical, the Rockin’ R Bar, Open Range steak house, and in Livingston, the Rib and Chop House.