Oak Ridge Today

Oliver Springs mayor tests positive for COVID before surgery, doesn’t have symptoms

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Oliver Springs Mayor Omer Cox (Photo courtesy Omer Cox)

Note: This story was updated at 5:30 p.m. July 16.

Oliver Springs Mayor Omer Cox tested positive for COVID-19 before a scheduled surgery, and he said he does not have any symptoms and is not sick.

“Hopefully, I won’t be,” Cox said.

Cox said he was tested on Saturday morning at Tennova North. He was notified by his surgeon of the positive test result at 9:45 a.m. Monday. The surgery was canceled.

Cox said he is in self-quarantine at home and following doctor’s orders, and he has notified everyone that he has had contact with.

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Anderson County has 219 COVID-19 cases, with 101 active

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Anderson County now has more than 200 total COVID-19 cases, and more than 100 are active. The chart above by the Tennessee Department of Health shows new cases in Anderson County through Tuesday, July 14, 2020.

Anderson County now has more than 200 total COVID-19 cases, and more than 100 are active.

The county reported 219 total COVID-19 cases and 101 active cases on Tuesday. Active cases are total cases minus recoveries and deaths.

The number of total cases has more than doubled since July 2, less than two weeks ago, and the number of active cases has about tripled since then.

Total cases measure how many residents have been infected. Active cases measure patients who have survived and might still have symptoms or are within 21 days of their first diagnosis.

The hospitalizations in Anderson County have not increased as fast as the new cases. On July 2, there were 10 total hospitalizations in Anderson County due to COVID-19. On Tuesday, the Tennessee Department of Health reported there have been 14 total hospitalizations in Anderson County. It’s not clear how many of those patients remain in the hospital.

The number of deaths has remained unchanged since June 4, when the second death due to COVID-19 was reported in Anderson County.

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Oliver Springs employee tests positive for COVID-19

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An Oliver Springs employee has tested positive for COVID-19, and City Hall will be closed to the public until August 3.

Oliver Springs officials learned of the positive diagnosis Monday morning. Other city employees are being tested.

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Rep. Calfee, wife Marilyn test positive for COVID-19

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Kent Calfee

Note: This story was last updated at 9:15 p.m.

Tennessee Representative Kent Calfee, a Republican whose district includes west Oak Ridge, and his wife Marilyn have tested positive for COVID-19, the legislator said Friday.

Calfee announced the diagnoses on his Facebook page. He said Marilyn tested positive for COVID-19 recently, and then he was tested this week. The results came back this afternoon, and they were positive, Calfee said.

“At this time, I am not experiencing any symptoms, and I have been self-isolating,” Calfee said. “I wanted to inform you of my positive test, so you could also take additional precautions to keep you and your loved ones safe, if you feel they are necessary. I have also notified legislative administration in Nashville, so they can take any additional precautions in accordance with the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) to maintain a safe working environment for all within the Cordell Hull Building.”

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Oak Ridge not authorized to require masks

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The City of Oak Ridge does not have the authority to require face masks to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, officials said Wednesday.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Anderson County, which includes Oak Ridge, has increased significantly this month. The county had 178 total cases on Thursday—a 70 percent increase since July 2—and the number of active cases more than doubled in eight days.

As the number of cases has surged in the region, people have set up social media groups where members have reported on mask use at local businesses and offices and called for mandatory masks, including in Oak Ridge and its schools.

On Wednesday, the city said it is prohibited from enacting or enforcing a mask requirement because of a Tennessee attorney general opinion issued in April and an executive order from Tennessee Governor Bill Lee in May. (The attorney general’s opinion is Opinion Number 20-07, and the executive order is Executive Order Number 38.)

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Oak Ridge Schools will now require masks when distance not possible

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After initially “strongly recommending” masks, students and staff members will now be required to wear face coverings in Oak Ridge Schools when physical distancing is not possible, Superintendent Bruce Borchers said Thursday.

A school re-opening plan published Monday, after families and staff members were surveyed, said masks would be strongly recommended, but not required, when students can’t stay six feet apart to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Students in regular classroom settings probably can’t stay six feet apart, the plan said.

Parents objected. Many said the mask recommendation wasn’t enough. They said they would contact school administrators to ask for mandatory face masks.

On Thursday, Borchers said the change to mandatory masks was made after a review of the “current situation.”

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Anderson County reports 23 new COVID cases in one day, a record

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Graph by Tennessee Department of Health

Anderson County reported 23 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, another record just four days after the previous high, and the state added a record number of new daily cases, reporting more than 2,000 new daily cases for the first time.

Anderson County, which has about 77,000 residents, added another 12 cases on Thursday. That pushed the total number of cases in the county up to 178, according to the Tennessee Department of Health.

The case growth in the county seems to have accelerated in the past eight days. During that time, the county has added 73 cases. That’s a 70 percent increase in cases in roughly a week. A week ago, on July 2, Anderson County had 105 cases.

The number of active cases in the county has jumped again. It had risen to 66 on Sunday before falling significantly on Monday and Tuesday. But it rose by about 30 on Wednesday and Thursday, and the number of active cases was at 86 on Thursday.

That’s more than double the 32 active cases reported in the county a week ago, on July 2. (Active cases are calculated by subtracting deaths and recoveries from total cases.) A month ago, the number of active cases was in the single digits.

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Roane County not requiring face masks, not clear if that could change

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As of Monday, Roane County had not invoked its ability to recommend or require face masks or coverings in the county, County Executive Ron Woody said in a video posted online.

On Friday, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee granted county mayors in most of the state’s counties the authority to recommend or require face masks.

In a video posted on Facebook on Monday, Woody said there are two issues that have to be resolved before Roane County considers invoking the mandate.

First, Woody said the order, Executive Order 54, hasn’t been officially published, at least not as of Monday afternoon.

Second, the county will wait for guidance from the regional health director, Woody said.

“Generally, a regional health director would make a recommendation to a county saying (there) is a health issue to invoke a mandate or some type of action,” Woody said. “The health department has made no recommendation at this time.”

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Anderson County will not require face masks

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Terry-Frank-Aug-15-2016
Terry Frank

Note: This story was last updated at 11:35 a.m.

Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank will not require face masks in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced Friday that he was giving county mayors in 89 of the state’s 95 counties the authority to recommend or require face coverings in their counties.

On Tuesday, Frank said she would not exercise the authority to require face coverings.

“The people of Anderson County have been doing a wonderful job following the governor’s guidance, and I often express how proud I am of the job they’ve been doing throughout this COVID-19 pandemic,” Frank said. “I trust and respect the people of Anderson County, and I believe it is through encouraging healthy behaviors, promoting prevention, and praising each other that we achieve the greatest health outcomes.”

Frank’s announcement comes as the number of COVID-19 cases has surged in Anderson County. The county added 39 new cases between Thursday and Monday, pushing the total up to 144, and the number of active cases about doubled from 32 on Thursday to 63 on Monday.

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Oak Ridge Schools to re-open July 29 with in-person, online options

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Oak Ridge Schools will re-open July 29 with in-person and online options.

The re-opening plan was announced Monday by Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers.

The July 29 re-opening date is part of the 2020-2021 district calendar.

The re-opening plan was announced as the number of total and active COVID-19 cases has surged in Anderson County. The county added 39 new cases between Thursday and Monday, pushing the total to 144, and the number of active cases about doubled from 32 on Thursday to 63 on Monday.

In a recent survey, conducted before the surge in cases during the past four days, most Oak Ridge families—85 percent of those who responded—said they want the school system to return to “some semblance of normalcy with students participating in face-to-face instruction,” Borchers said.

Those who responded to the survey said their highest priorities while trying to bring students back to school safely are 1) regularly disinfecting common areas, 2) practicing social distancing, 3) providing temperature checks, 4) reducing non-essential visitors in the school, and 5) wearing masks as needed.

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How the state defines confirmed, probable COVID-19 cases, deaths

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Oak Ridge Today recently asked the Tennessee Department of Health how it defines confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases.

That information is included on the state’s website. So is information about COVID-19 deaths and probable deaths, and antibody tests.

This is among the information frequently requested by readers.

Almost all of the state’s total count of COVID-19 cases—more than 99 percent of them—are confirmed cases. About 0.7 percent of them are probable cases.

Here is how the Tennessee Department of Health defines confirmed and probable cases:

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AC reports 37 new COVID cases in 3 days as active cases double

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Anderson County reported 18 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, July 4, 2020, the largest one-day increase. (Graph by Tennessee Department of Health)

Note: This story was last updated at 5:30 p.m.

Anderson County reported 37 new COVID-19 cases in the past three days as the number of active cases more than doubled.

The largest increase in the past three days was on Saturday, when 18 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Anderson County. That was the largest one-day increase in the county, a 15.5 percent daily jump.

There were 11 new cases reported on Friday and eight new cases reported on Sunday.

The number of active cases in the county more than doubled from 32 on Thursday to 66 on Sunday. (Active cases are calculated by subtracting recoveries and deaths from total cases.)

Anderson County now has 142 total cases, with two deaths and 74 recoveries, according to the Tennessee Department of Health.

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