By Josh Margolis
HAVRE, Mont. (NMB) – The Hill County Board of Health met on Wednesday afternoon for their scheduled quarterly meeting.
The COVID-19 pandemic dominated most of the discussion.
Health Officer Jessica Sheehy says that the state is not recommending more COVID-19 surveillance testing at this time due to a backlog at Quest Diagnostics, the private company that is processing Montana’s sentinel tests. This backlog has slowed the receiving of testing results nationwide.
“They are quite overwhelmed. They work with other states as well. So until we get further information, those are kind of on hold. It’s a little unfortunate because Hill and Blaine County were planning surveillance testing over the next couple weeks, but we won’t be able to do that.”
However, testing is still available for close contacts of active cases and those that are symptomatic. Turnaround time for these tests, which are processed at the state lab in Helena, is typically between 24 and 72 hours.
As of now, the county is not planning on issuing more restrictions due to the spread of COVID-19. Both Sheehy and Health Director Kim Larson said that more restrictions could be put in place down the road, especially if community spread becomes evident locally. If and when new restrictions are put in place, Sheehy and Larson say they will be logical and data-driven.
As for large events in Hill County, organizers have been working with county officials on COVID-19 prevention plans. However, they say some organizers have been more cooperative and forthright than others, although no examples were provided.
Both Larson and Sheehy said that they do not recommend people attend events of more than 50 people, as in line with the current directive from the Governor, but they are not going to put restrictions in place at this time or stop events from happening. They ask residents to use their personal judgement when deciding on whether to attend an event.
Larson also wanted to reiterate that if the Health Department doesn’t contact you directly, you are not a close contact of a direct case. She does urge everyone to make sure their voicemail is set up in case they do receive a call from the department.
593 COVID-19 tests have been performed in Hill County as of Wednesday afternoon, 11 of which are pending. This does not include sentinel or rapid testing.
There have been no COVID-19 related hospitalizations in Hill County.
Other topics brought up at the quarterly meeting:
- Mobile immunization clinics have been halted to to the recent rise in COVID-19. They hope to hold clinics in August as the school year approaches. There will not be a Lil’ Shots Carnival this summer.
- Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) programming will continue to be conducted over the phone at least through September, with some services being done curbside.
- There has been a spike in syphilis cases throughout the state, so the Health Department is recommending people that are sexually active undergo screening for Sexually Transmitted Diseases and that those who are pregnant schedule pre-natal appointments.
- Harmful Algal Blooms have been sparse this summer on local water bodies, likely due to below-average temperatures. However, a harmful algal bloom has been spotted in Bailey Reservoir near Kremlin, and a sample has been sent to the state for research.
The Hill County Board of Health will meet again on Friday, July 24th at noon to provide another update on the COVID-19 pandemic. The next quarterly meeting is scheduled for October 21st.
