As of Friday, July 17, 2020, Montana reports 2,366 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 137 new cases reported in the last day: Yellowstone County has 23 new cases, 21 new cases in Missoula County, 19 new cases in Lake County, 10 in Hill County, 9 in Gallatin and in Lewis & Clark County, 6 new cases in each of Cascade and Glacier County, 5 in Flathead County, 4 new cases in each of Madison and Park Counties, 3 in Blaine and in Pondera Counties, 2 new cases in each of Big Horn, Deer Lodge, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Ravalli Counties, and 1 new case in each of five counties: Richland, Rosebud, Sanders, Stillwater, and Sweet Grass Counties. Statewide, 159 people have been hospitalized, and 45 people are currently being treated in the hospital for COVID-19. Yellowstone County has had 652 cases so far, surpassing Gallatin County, with 544 cases so far. The most active cases are in Yellowstone County, with 462 active cases. Gallatin County has 292 active cases. Statewide, there are 1,337 active cases. Sadly, two more people have died in Montana of COVID-19: a woman in her 90s died at Canyon Creek Memory Care in Billings on Thursday. In the past eleven days, 10 residents at the Billings nursing home have died. And a person died in Lewis & Clark County, that county’s first death from COVID-19. To date, 37 people have died in Montana of COVID-19. Nationwide, more than 138,000 Americans have died.

Reminder of the statewide mask requirement.

The US smashed its highest daily record for COVID-19 infections with more than 77,300 new cases on Thursday, July 16. That record comes after the worst week of the outbreak for the US, which has consistently seen at least 59,000 new confirmed cases each day. The US outbreak also hit 3.5 million cases on Thursday and at least 138,359 deaths from COVID-19, the highest of any country by a big margin, nearly twice that of the next worst-hit country.

White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci urged young Americans not to take the coronavirus lightly, saying doing so could propagate the pandemic. Dr. Fauci said, “You have to have responsibility for yourself but also a societal responsibility that you’re getting infected is not just you in a vacuum. You’re propagating the pandemic.” The comment by Fauci came as many state health officials say more young people are ignoring social distancing measures and contracting the virus at a higher rate. The average age of a new COVID-19 patient has dropped by 15 years since the beginning of the pandemic in the U.S. Most new cases in the U.S. are people under the age of 35.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday banned all US cruises through September after it documented thousands of onboard coronavirus infections as well as “ongoing” outbreaks on ships. The agency’s no-sail order was set to expire on July 24, but troubling COVID-19 data from vessels forced the CDC to issue an extension. During the coronavirus outbreak on the Diamond Princess, infected passengers passed the virus to four times as many people as those living in the COVID-19 outbreak origin, Wuhan, China. There were 99 outbreaks on 123 ships, with 80 percent of all US cruise ships grappling with infections.

In Missoula, the Curry Health Center at the University of Montana alerted students, faculty and staff of confirmed cases of COVID-19 impacting the campus community. The confirmed positive cases are all students. In Helena, a Carroll College student has tested positive for COVID-19. The student was living in the on-campus apartments at the time of diagnosis and has remained on campus during the recovery process. Students who signed a 12-month lease are allowed to remain in on-campus housing over the summer even when classes are not in session.