Gov. Steve Bullock told President Trump in a Monday conference call that Montana is nearly out of tests for COVID-19, according to an audio recording obtained by The New York Times.
Bullock, a Democrat, said officials in Montana are trying to do "contact tracing," or tracking down people who have come into contact with those tested, the paper reported.
However, Montana doesn't have adequate tests from the federal Centers for Disease Control, Bullock said.
“Literally we are one day away, if we don’t get test kits from the C.D.C., that we wouldn’t be able to do testing in Montana,” said Bullock, according to The Times.
MTN News has reached out to Bullock's office for comment and will update with any response.
Trump, a Republican, then responded in the call that he "hasn't heard about testing in weeks" and didn't realize it was a problem.
According to the Montana COVID-19 Response site, the state has tested 4,411 people since the start of the outbreak. As of Monday afternoon, Montana had 177 confirmed cases of COVID-19, although heath officials warn the number is likely larger because more testing needs to be done.
Four people have died in Montana, and 12 have been hospitalized.
Listen to the full recording here.
