MISSOULA — Local health officials report that confirmed COVID-19 cases in Montana have almost tripled since March 18.
The Missoula City-County Health Department notes the uptick in confirmed cases could be due to increased testing and delayed reporting from private labs.
However, local health officials stress that they are are taking the new cases seriously.
There is still no evidence of community spread in Missoula at this time, according to health department officials, but that could change.
Community spread means spread of the illness for which the source of infection is not known.
Six confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported in Missoula County as of March 23.
Health officials are stressing that adhering to social distancing practices is vital to delaying community spread of COVID-19.