GREAT FALLS — As many hospitals in Montana, including Benefis Health System in Great Falls, deal with a spike in coronavirus cases, Tracy’s Family Diner is challenging businesses to help out.
The restaurant delivered meals on Thursday to employees in Benefis’ Intensive Care Unit and hopes other businesses will make similar efforts.
Montana has averaged more than 300 new coronavirus cases a day for the past week. Benefis was at 115% capacity as of Wednesday with 37 coronavirus cases, seven of which were in the ICU.
Tracy’s Family Diner donated meals to the hospital at the beginning of the pandemic when the hospital became overwhelmed, but felt like it was time Thursday for another donation.
"Seems like now we're getting to that point again when the numbers are picking up. The amount and duration of stress on Benefis and the healthcare associates themselves has become more significant over the last month. So we really wanted to take an opportunity right now to thank them,” explained Tracy’s Family Diner executive chef Gregory Rodgers.
The restaurant also plans to deliver food on Friday to the Emergency Department.
There were 429 new cases and one new death added to the total on the Montana COVID-19 tracking site on Thursday morning. It is the largest one-day total of new cases recorded in Montana. The data below is from the official Montana website on October 1:
- TOTAL CASES & RECOVERIES: Montana now reports 13,500 cumulative cases statewide, with 9,428 people recovered.
- HOSPITALIZATIONS: The state reports 170 current hospitalizations, and a cumulative total of 727 hospitalizations.
- ACTIVE CASES: The state reports there are currently 3,891 active COVID-19 cases in Montana.
- TESTING: The number of tests increased by 5,551 over the previous 24-hour reporting period, for a new cumulative state-wide total of 348,709.
- DEATHS: The cumulative number of deaths in Montana is at 181, an increase of one since yesterday.
The counties reporting the largest numbers of new cases are Yellowstone County with 93 new cases, followed by Cascade County with 67, Flathead County with 66, Missoula County with 32, and Richland County with 20.
CASCADE COUNTY: Cascade County has reported a cumulative number of 796 cases, an increase of 67 from yesterday. Of those, 434 are listed as recovered, 357 are currently listed as active, and five people have died. During a news conference on Wednesday, representatives from hospitals around the state say they’re feeling the stress from the increase in COVID hospitalizations. Benefis Health System in Great Falls is currently at 115% capacity, with 37 patients hospitalized due to COVID complications, seven of whom are in the ICU. Click here to read more.
CDC: The federal Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) released data last month which emphasizes that people with contributing or underlying medical conditions are at much greater risk of dying from COVID-19. According to the CDC, an estimated 94% of all COVID-related deaths in the nation were people who had contributing medical conditions and diseases. The CDC report states: "For 6% of the deaths, COVID-19 was the only cause mentioned. For deaths with conditions or causes in addition to COVID-19, on average, there were 2.6 additional conditions or causes per death." The report states that the most common underlying medical conditions that contributed to COVID-related deaths include respiratory diseases such as pneumonia, asthma, and COPD; diabetes; hyptertensive diseases; and heart disease. Click here to learn more on the CDC website.
The CDC also recently released an update to their research into fatality rates associated with COVID-19. A summary of COVID-19 survival rates is shown below; the summary is one of five based on several scenarios. The CDC data and scenarios can be found here.
COVID-19 Survival Rates
- Age 0-19: 99.997%
- Age 20-49: 99.98%
- Age 50-69: 99.5%
- Age 70+: 94.6%
The CDC says the scenarios are intended to advance public health preparedness and planning, and are not predictions or estimates of the expected impact of COVID-19. The parameter values in each scenario will be updated and augmented over time, as the agency learns more about the epidemiology of COVID-19. The update from September 10th is based on data received by the CDC through August 8.
