On Monday morning, Montana’s coronavirus task force announced there were no new confirmed cases of COVID-19. This is the first time the state has shown zero new positives since officials announced Montana’s first few cases in March.

The drop-off in daily positives has been fairly consistent for about one week. Barring a slight uptick on April 15 when the task force announced 11 new cases that day, Montana hasn’t seen double digits since April 12.

As of Monday, the state was holding steady at 433 total confirmed cases. Of these, 243 have recovered and 19 are currently hospitalized. The state testing laboratory in Helena has performed 11,051 tests, which means there are likely more positive cases considering Montana has over 1 million residents.

State data also shows Montana has experienced 11 COVID-related fatalities to date. Unfortunately, most of these deaths have been recorded in rural Toole County on Montana’s Hi-Line, where the virus has primarily infected residents and health-care workers at an assisted living facility in Shelby. The Toole County Health Department released a press release Monday morning announcing the area's fifth and most recent death, that of a woman aged 80 to 89.

“Of the cases in Montana at this time, nearly half have recovered. Multiple sources predict Montana has passed, or is nearing, its coronavirus peak,” the press release stated. “Please continue to remain vigilant of proper social distancing and hygiene protocols, along with all of the Governor’s directives, so that we, as a state, can stop the spread.”

Last week, Bullock announced the release of a report in which state epidemiologists examined 377 cases of COVID-19 in Montana in an effort to help the state understand who is impacted by the new virus, how it spread and patient outcomes. The cases examined were those reported during the first month of the state’s outbreak.

The data indicates 30% of reported cases were likely acquired through travel-related exposure and 26% of cases were likely acquired in the community. While travel-related cases contributed to the majority of the outbreaks early on, new cases attributed to travel are declining.

In Flathead County specifically, the report shows 14% of cases evaluated were travel associated, 8% household contact, 5% contact, 4% community acquired and 1% were “health-care-associated infections.”

The report also shows in total, half of Montana’s 377 cases were male and half were female. The most common age group impacted by the virus were those ages 20 to 29 and the second-most common age group was 50 to 59.

The report also highlights the slower rate of growth in new cases that has been experienced in recent weeks. Bullock’s press release on the report stated, “although it’s too soon to tell if this slow growth will continue, it could be an early indicator of the effectiveness of staying home.”

Reporter Kianna Gardner can be reached at 758-4407 or kgardner@dailyinterlake.com