vaccines

Most nursing home staff and residents in Montana aren’t up-to-date on their COVID vaccines, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation report.

This year, lawmakers have introduced proposals to expand vaccine exemptions in schools and change criteria in the workplace and the legal system.

Montana state health department spokesperson Jon Ebelt says the state is ordering vaccines in anticipation of the approval, but didn’t say how many. He says providers could receive the vaccines by June 21, which is the earliest they could be administered following approval.

A listener asks how they can forgive their fellow Montanans when it feels like some don't care about how their actions can impact people at high risk for COVID.

Federal health officials have approved a second COVID-19 booster shot for those age 50 and older as well as certain immunocompromised people. The state health department says the approval means about 400,000 Montanans can get another shot.

Montana’s governor pushed the state’s health workers to seek religious exemptions to a federal mandate to be vaccinated against COVID, but the number who have done so is unknown, leaving immunocompromised patients worried.

A University of Montana economist estimates $35 million has been spent in the state caring for preventable COVID-19 hospitalizations among the unvaccinated.

Gov. Greg Gianforte on Tuesday applauded a federal court decision pausing the Biden administration’s rule mandating COVID-19 vaccines or testing for employers with 100 or more employees.

Kids 5-11 can now get vaccinated against COVID-19. Dr.Lauren Wilson, a Missoula pediatrician, answers questions about why kids should be vaccinated, possible side effects, the effectiveness of the vaccine and more.

People who work at a company with more than 100 employees will be required to either get vaccinated against COVID-19 or get tested weekly by Jan. 4. The U.S. Department of Labor announced the timeline for the mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy Thursday. Montana’s Attorney General plans to sue over the rule.