COVID-19
The latest news on COVID-19 and how it affects Northwest Montana.
Gianforte asks Biden to end Covid public health emergency
Gov. Greg Gianforte and a consortium of Republican governors sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Monday aski...
Montana hospital recruits international nurses in tight workforce
Before Mary Venus was offered a nursing job at a hospital here, she’d never heard of Billings or visited the United States. A native of the Philippines, she ...
Supreme Court halts vaccine rule for businesses
The Supreme Court has stopped the Biden administration from enforcing a requirement that employees at large businesses be vaccinated against COVID-19 or unde...
Montana orders 650,000 rapid COVID-19 tests for residents
The state of Montana has ordered 650,000 rapid COVID-19 tests to be distributed to residents through county health departments, Gov. Greg Gianforte announced...
Biden to double free COVID tests, add N95s, to fight omicron
President Joe Biden announced Thursday that the government will double to 1 billion the rapid, at-home COVID-19 tests to be distributed free to Americans, al...
Omicron wave threatens Montana hospital capacity
A coalition of Montana medical groups warned on Tuesday that hospitals are once again at risk of being extended beyond their caregiving capacity as the more transmissible omicron variant starts to spread across t...
Blackfeet repeal decision to move to Phase 2 Covid regs
The Blackfeet Reservation entered Phase 2 Covid restrictions for almost 24 hours before repealing the decision Tuesday.
Smith Valley School closes due to Covid-caused staff shortage
Smith Valley School canceled classes Tuesday because of a shortage of staff as a result of Covid-19.
County to use online platform for Covid contact tracing
The Flathead City-County Health Department is shifting to an online platform to contact Covid-19 positive individuals in anticipation of rising cases due to ...
Gianforte won't use emergency powers to combat omicron
Gov. Greg Gianforte acknowledged the high degree of transmissibility of the omicron COVID-19 variant but maintained at a press conference Tuesday at the Capi...
Montana joins lawsuit challenging vaccine mandate for Head Start employees
Montana has joined 23 other states in asking a federal judge to permanently and temporarily stop the Biden administration vaccine and mask mandates for Head ...
As Covid fueled the drug crisis, Native Americans hit worst
As the pandemic ravaged the country, deaths from drug overdoses surged by nearly 30%, climbing to a record high.
Missouri court adds to ban on Biden contractor vaccine rule
A federal judge in Missouri added another legal block Monday against President Joe Biden's requirement that federal contractors receive COVID-19 vaccinations.
Uneven distribution of rapid Covid tests presents challenges
Public health officials and policymakers alike see rapid antigen tests as a strong tool to keep businesses open and parents working. But a look at Montana’s distribution of the tests shows a patchwork system with...
Omicron sweeps across nation, detected in Montana
Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the U.S., accounting for 73% of new infections last week, fed...
OSHA vaccine mandate penalties to start Jan. 10
The Occupational Health and Safety Administration said Saturday that it would not issue citations tied to its coronavirus vaccination mandate before Jan. 10,...