https://www.mtpr.org/post/montana-coronavirus-and-covid-19-news
But Providence Montana Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Josh Christiansen offered a sobering prediction.
“This is not if this is coming. It’s coming. We will have a lot of sick patients at some point,” Christiansen said.
Christiansen says his team at Missoula’s St. Pat’s and other local partners are learning a lot from colleagues in Seattle. He says they’re doing everything possible locally to prepare for a worst case scenario.
“We’re really aggressively trying to stay on top of this,” Christiansen said. “This is going to be, I think, I’ll be honest, a life changing event for all of us. I think ultimately we as a state and a nation are going to be ok, but it’s going to be a rough, potentially prolonged period that we’re dealing with this.”
03/20/20 4:45 p.m.
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock announced this morning that beginning at 8 p.m. tonight all dine-in food service, bars and other recreational businesses will close for a week to combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a press call last hour, Bullock also confirmed a new case out of Madison County and another from Lewis and Clark County. Two new cases were also announced in Flathead county, which included one county resident.
"It's evident that it is in both urban and rural areas of our state, so a uniform closure order seemed to me and after consulting with others, most protective to human health and most likely to flatten the curve of spreading along the way."
The closure order for restaurants, cafes, breweries, cigar bars, movie theaters, gyms, music halls and other indoor recreational facilities is in effect until March 27, the same day school closures are set to expire, though
that date could be pushed back. Food delivery and grab and go service are still available. Several Montana county health departments issued similar local closure orders this week.
Most folks I have talked to are not happy about their Governors flexing their muscle. Here is CO, the masses want to toss our Governor out! However most understand these are not normal times and most folks are happy they are not in the "hot-seat" having to make those decisions.
CW