As of Friday, June 4, 2021, Montana reports 112,260 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 138 new cases reported in the last day: 32 new cases in Flathead County, 21 new cases in Yellowstone County, 16 new cases in Cascade County, 15 new cases in Missoula County, 8 new cases in Lewis & Clark County, and more new cases in 15 more Montana counties. The number of active coronavirus cases in Montana is 656. Currently, 59 people are being treated in Montana hospitals for COVID-19. The most active cases are in Yellowstone, Flathead and Cascade Counties. 1,632 people have died in Montana of COVID-19. Five more deaths have been reported in the last two days. Nationwide, more than 596,000 Americans have died of COVID-19. There have been 33,300,000 cases of coronavirus in the US, and counting.

The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Rochelle Walensky, is urging parents to vaccinate their teenagers against Covid-19, citing a rise in the number of adolescents hospitalized with the disease in March and April. Walensky said she’s “saddened to see the number of adolescents who required treatment in intensive care units or mechanical ventilation.”

Facebook has suspended former President Donald Trump’s accounts for two years, citing a public safety risk. The two-year ban includes Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts until at least January 2023. Facebook said that Trump’s actions on its social media networks constituted a severe violation of its rules which merit the highest penalty available under the new enforcement protocols.

Montana State University researchers have developed a coronavirus rapid test. While the coronavirus pandemic has proven once more that the tiniest germ can upset global civilization, a Montana State University team responded by illustrating that ancient strategies used by bacteria to battle viruses can be repurposed into transformative technologies.

Former PSC chairman Greg Jergeson is calling for PSC commissioner removal after an audit found falsified financial records at the Montana Public Service Commission. Jergeson is asking Gov. Greg Gianforte to do something no previous executive has done — remove a commissioner from office.