Valley County COVID-19 Vaccination Rate Low

Of an eligible population of 6,313 residents, only about 40% currently are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the Valley County Public Health Department.

As of Aug. 30, 2,700 residents had received one dose of vaccine, with 4,898 total doses administered.

The number of fully immunized residents stands at 2,511.

This is slightly smaller than the state average of 50% of the eligible population fully vaccinated.

The county with the lowest rate of vaccination currently is McCone, with only 25% fully immunized. No county in Montana currently has a majority of eligible recipients vaccinated.

Currently, there are 23 active cases in Valley County.

The number of infections is much larger in more populated areas such as Yellowstone County, which currently has 812 current active cases. Cascade County currently has 698 active cases while Missoula County has 667.

Statewide, there are 736 new cases. To date, 1,787 people have died as a result of the virus, while 119,729 have recovered.

In Valley County, 18 people have died with 908 fully recovered.

Vaccine Clinic

A walk-in vaccine clinic for COVID-19 is open from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. every Wednesday at the Valley County Health Department. Both the Johnson & Johnson and Moderna vaccines for those aged 18 and older are available. It takes six weeks from the first Moderna vaccine to achieve maximum immunity, with 94% effectiveness.

Health experts recommend anyone with any symptoms of COVID-19 stay home and isolate from others. Symptoms include fever, chills, muscle aches, runny nose, sore throat, change or loss of taste or smell, headache, fatigue, cough, wheezing, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or loss of appetite.

The CDC has been recommending masks for several weeks for all persons when indoors around others. Valley County has substantial transmission levels of COVID-19 infection and masks are recommended to prevent the spread of COVID-19.