Montana has a terrible outbreak of coronavirus cases, hospitalizations, and deaths from COVID-19. Please, everyone, stop gathering. Wear a face mask over your nose and mouth whenever you’re out of your own home. Keep your distance from others.

As of Monday, November 23, 2020, Montana reports 56,381 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 677 new cases reported in the last day: 102 in Gallatin County, 93 in Flathead County, 78 in Missoula County, 62 in Silver Bow County, 57 in Cascade County, 56 in Yellowstone County, 50 in Lewis & Clark County, and more new cases in 30 more Montana counties. Statewide, 2,377 people have been hospitalized. Currently, 467 people are being treated in Montana hospitals for COVID-19. The number of active coronavirus cases in Montana is now 16,317. The most active cases are in Yellowstone, Flathead, and Cascade Counties, and Missoula and Gallatin County. Eleven more Montanans died in the past day due to COVID-19, bringing the numbers of deaths from COVID in Montana to 614 people. Nationwide, more than 257,000 Americans have died of COVID-19. There have been 12,400,000 cases of coronavirus in the US, and counting.

A third pharmaceutical company, AstraZeneca, said Monday that its Covid-19 vaccine could be up to 90 percent effective in preventing the disease — another breakthrough in the fight against a pandemic that has killed nearly 1.4 million people worldwide. The vaccine developed by Oxford University in the United Kingdom showed that it was 90 percent effective when half a dose was administered followed by a full dose; the half dose may act to “prime” the body’s immune system to more readily use the second full dose. In testing, when two full doses were administered, the vaccine was 62 percent effective. In patients participating in the vaccine trial, there were no hospitalizations or severe cases of COVID-19. The vaccine uses a weakened version of a common cold virus and it can be administered in existing health care settings, such as medical clinics and local pharmacies, and stored at refrigerator temperatures, making its distribution easier.

In the NFL, the Baltimore Ravens have closed their practice and playing facility as a result of COVID-positive players and staff. A team closing its facility due to a positive COVID-19 test has become a regular occurrence in the NFL this season, but the upcoming holiday complicates things. The Ravens play on Thursday night in the closing game of the NFL’s annual Thanksgiving triple-header. They were already dealing with a condensed time frame to prepare, and closing the facility means there can be no in-person prep Monday. That leaves the Ravens two full days, plus Thanksgiving itself, to get ready.