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How Nashville will play a critical role in developing the COVID-19 vaccine
In the national race to develop a vaccine against COVID-19, officially dubbed “Operation Warp Speed,” Nashville residents are at the starting gate. Two major Phase III vaccine trials are separately getting underway at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Meharry Medical College. A Nashville research firm is tentatively partnering with the Metro Health Department on two […]
Lawmakers begin review of sweeping emergency powers granted to governor
Since the onset of the pandemic in Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee has drawn on sweeping emergency powers granted under state law to issue 44 executive orders, including stay-at-home orders, business closures and limits on nursing home visitors. On Thursday, state lawmakers met to consider whether those powers should be reigned in going forward. “Does (the […]
Tennessee now only state to pursue plan for Medicaid block grant
Tennessee remains the only state actively pursuing a controversial Medicaid block grant touted by the Trump Administration in January as a “game-changer” that would radically rejigger financing for the federal-state public health insurance program that covers 1 in 5 Americans. Last week, Oklahoma’s Republican governor, Gov. Kevin Stitt, informed federal officials he was scrapping plans […]
Six school districts require teachers in class after COVID-19 exposure
Beth Brown, president of the Tennessee Education Association, has been fielding increasingly anxious calls from teacher-members, some who learned last week their school districts had adopted a policy requiring employees potentially exposed to coronavirus to report to work instead of isolating at home. In at least six districts across Tennessee, educators have been told they […]
Legislature passes bill to protect businesses from COVID-19 liability
A Gov. Bill Lee-backed measure that will shield public and private entities from legal liability over COVID-19 deaths or illnesses was approved by Tennessee lawmakers on Wednesday along party lines. The measure establishes high legal hurdles for anyone — an employee, a customer or a surviving loved one — who allege they contracted COVID-19 as […]
COVID-19 liability legislation moves forward
The Tennessee legislature reconvened today to fast-track Gov. Bill Lee’s proposed legislation to exempt public and private companies and institutions from legal liability related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In separate committee hearings on Tuesday, during a specially called session expected to wrap up in less than a week, Democratic lawmakers argued unsuccessfully against the measure. […]
Outbreak at Bordeaux residential facility for delinquent youth infects 28 kids, 15 staff
A COVID-19 outbreak at a Nashville facility that cares for children in the custody of the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services infected 28 children and 15 staff members, according to data provided by the child welfare agency. Standing Tall Music City in Bordeaux provides mental health, drug and alcohol use and other treatment to boys […]
Metro health board approves revised plan to share limited COVID patient data with first responders
A temporary plan approved by the Metro Board of Health on Thursday will allow first responders to access information on individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 under highly proscribed circumstances. The Metro Public Health Department had previously shared patient names and addresses with law enforcement before the controversial data-sharing arrangement was halted in June. […]
Staff, children recovering after COVID outbreak at Nashville juvenile detention center
Eleven children and eight staff members tested positive for COVID-19 at the Davidson County Juvenile Detention Center in June. All have since recovered. The east Nashville facility is one of five juvenile detention centers around Tennessee that have had positive coronavirus cases among staff or youth, according to data obtained from the Department of Children’s […]
Report: 1,120 Tennessee businesses closed permanently due to pandemic
Between March 1 and July 10, 1,959 businesses in Tennessee have shut down in response to the pandemic — with 1,120 reporting their closures are permanent, according to data compiled by the business-rating site Yelp. In the Nashville-Franklin-Murfreesboro metro areas collectively saw at least 410 business close for good, Yelp reported. An additional 331 have […]
Lack of internet access puts ‘distance learning’ out of reach for many Tennessee children
NOTE: Story has been updated with comments from state Sen. Janice Bowling, R-Tullahoma. In Chester County, located about 90 miles east of Memphis, parents of public school students have until Wednesday to decide on virtual versus in-person learning ahead of the district’s August 10 reopening. But for many families in the county of about 17,000 […]
A snapshot of July’s rising numbers of COVID-19 cases in Nashville by zip code
Densely populated neighborhoods in South Nashville, Madison and Nashville’s downtown core continue to see the largest number of COVID-19 positive cases, but case counts have sharply increased in other parts of the city as well as coronavirus cases continue to spike in the state’s capitol. Here is a snapshot of COVID-19 positive cases by zip […]