BILLINGS - Yellowstone County health officials reported Thursday the death of another county resident from COVID-19 related illness.
RiverStone Health said in a press release that on Feb. 22 a man in his 70s died at a Billings hospital. The death was reported to public health officials Wednesday after death certificate review.
At least 241 Yellowstone County residents have lost their lives to the pandemic so far, the health agency said. The man who died on Feb. 22 is one of 11 residents who died in February. Three COVID-19 deaths have been reported in March.
“I offer my deepest sympathy to the family and friends of the Yellowstone County man whose death was most recently reported to us,” said Yellowstone County Health Officer John Felton. “Tragically, we continue to have deaths even as the overall COVID-19 case count has dropped in our county.”
Yellowstone County has 165 active COVID-19 cases as of Thursday, March 11, the press release states. The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services online case map now shows 165 cases, a sharp decrease from 553 cases on the map Wednesday.
There has been a significant discrepancy recently between the actual active case count in Yellowstone County and the incorrectly high number listed on the state map. DPHHS has reconciled the data to reflect the most up-to-date case count, the press release states.