The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) on Tuesday sent its annual warning to Montanans to prepare for the respiratory virus season, as the first influenza cases and the first hospitalization of the year have been reported during the past two weeks.

The department said lab-confirmed cases of the flu have already been reported in recent weeks. The DPPHS respiratory illness dashboard showed there were 12 reported cases of the flu the first week of October and one reported hospitalization, along with 486 cases of COVID-19 — primarily in Blaine, Sheridan, Chouteau and Daniels counties.

The dashboard shows health care workers performed 315 tests on people for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) that same week, but none came back positive.

The state’s dashboards contain information about COVID-19, the flu, RSV, outbreaks and emergency room data.

This screenshot from the DPHHS respiratory illness dashboard shows influenza cases, hospitalizations and deaths over the past few years. (Screenshot via DPHHS) During the last respiratory illness season, which runs October through May, 900 people were hospitalized with the flu in Montana and 44 people died.

More than 900 people were hospitalized for COVID-19, and 98 deaths were reported, and those figures do not include people who only tested positive for the viruses at home, according to DPHHS.

There were a combined 35,000 cases of the two illnesses reported during the 2023-24 season.

DPHHS says vaccination is “the best form of protection” against having more serious outcomes from the diseases, especially among people with weakened immune systems. Vaccines are available for most people for the three illnesses — RSV vaccines are available primarily for older Montanans and pregnant people — as well as pneumococcal pneumonia, and vaccination locations can be found on the government’s website.

Montanans who do contract a respiratory illness are advised to stay home and away from others while sick and to only return to daily activities at least 24 hours after they are fever-free and symptoms have subsided, according to DPHHS.

People are also encouraged to wash their hands regularly, cover their mouths and noses when sneezing and coughing, and to use a face mask when indoors and around others more at risk of contracting a severe illness.

As of late September, households can once again order four free COVID-19 tests from the federal government at covidtests.gov. At that website, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration also has information on older tests whose expiration dates have passed but which may still be usable.

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