Tennessee reported more than 3,000 new COVID-19 cases in the past three days—an average of more than 1,000 new cases per day—and the number of cases has passed 100 in Anderson County.
There are now about 15,300 active cases in Tennessee and 32 active cases in Anderson County.
The Tennessee Department of Health did not report COVID-19 data on Sunday because of an unplanned shutdown of the state system. But the two-day numbers released Monday showed an average of more than 1,000 new cases per day for Sunday and Monday.
The state reported an additional 1,212 new cases on Tuesday. That is the second-highest new daily total reported since the first case was diagnosed in the state on Wednesday, March 4.
The highest daily total in Tennessee, 1,410, was reported just four days ago, on Friday.
The Baker Center for Public Policy at the University of Tennessee said the seven-day average for new cases in the state has reached a new all-time high every day since June 24.
Hospitalizations are also at an all-time high. There have been an average of 47 new hospitalizations each day, the Baker Center said.
The total number of current hospitalizations has climbed from 410 on June 16 to 527 on Monday. State data about hospital capacity shows 21 percent of intensive care beds remain available, 43 percent of airborne infection isolation rooms are available, and 72 percent of adult ventilators are available.
While the total number of current hospitalizations has risen, the statewide hospitalization and death rates have fallen, with the hospitalization rate declining faster than the death rate. The hospitalization rate is now about 6.1 percent, and the death rate is roughly 1.4 percent.
The recovery rate has also fallen slightly to 63 percent.
Statewide, there were 43,509 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, with 604 deaths. There have been 27,599 recoveries and 2,665 hospitalizations, according to the Tennessee Department of Health.
Anderson County has 102 confirmed and probable cases, with two deaths and 68 recoveries.
The highest number of cases in the state are in Shelby County, which includes Memphis in West Tennessee. The case count there is 10,028, passing 10,000. There have been 192 deaths in Shelby County.
More than 9,200 cases have been reported in Davidson County, which includes Nashville in Middle Tennessee. The Tennessee Department of Health has reported 113 total deaths there.
Other counties with case counts of more than 1,000 include Hamilton (Chattanooga area), with 2,466 cases and 30 deaths; Rutherford (Nashville area), with 2,528 cases and 34 deaths; Trousdale (Turner Trousdale Correctional Center), with 1,485 cases and five deaths; Sumner (Nashville area), with 1,417 cases and 52 deaths; and Williamson (Nashville area), with 1,013 cases and 14 deaths.
The number of cases in Knox County, which includes Knoxville and is adjacent to Anderson County, has increased to 967, up about 300 cases in the past eight days.
There have been five deaths and 569 recoveries in Knox County, with the recoveries increasing by more than 100 during the past week. The number of active cases in Knox County (cases minus recoveries minus deaths) is 393.
Here is COVID-19 case information about other counties surrounding Anderson County:
- Loudon County has reported 261 cases, one death, and 211 recoveries.
- Roane County has reported 44 cases, no deaths, and 32 recoveries.
- Campbell County has reported 36 cases, one death, and 26 recoveries.
- Morgan County has reported 24 cases, one death, and 20 recoveries.
- Scott County has reported 14 cases, no deaths, and 13 recoveries.
- Union County has reported 12 cases, no deaths, and seven recoveries.
COVID-19 is a new, contagious respiratory illness that can be deadly and can cause a range of health issues that can last weeks or months, including fevers, body aches, fatigue, coughing, and breathing problems, among other reported symptoms. The long-term effects remain unknown.
It can be spread by respiratory droplets from coughing, sneezing, talking, and singing.
The disease appears to be especially deadly to patients who are 61 years old and older, according to data from the Tennessee Department of Health. In Tennessee, the number of deaths starts rising in the 41-50 age group, and it continues to climb in older age groups. There have been between 114 and 200 deaths in the three oldest age groups: 61-70, 71-80, and 81 and older.
On Tuesday, the statewide positivity rate (new cases divided by new tests) was 7.6 percent. It was lower in Anderson County, 3.8 percent. The World Health Organization has issued guidance stating that governments should see positivity rates below 5 percent for at least 14 days before relaxing social distancing measures.
There have been a total of 792,779 COVID-19 tests in Tennessee and 7,492 in Anderson County. The population of Tennessee was estimated at about 6.8 million in July 2019, and the population of Anderson County was estimated at about 76,978.
Doctors and public health officials have been issuing increasingly dire warnings about the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in the United States, especially in four states—Arizona, California, Florida, and Texas—and the increase in hospitalizations in at least 12 states.
On Tuesday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told the U.S. Senate health committee that cases could rise dramatically unless the nation can control the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The United States is now having more than 40,000 new cases per day. Fauci said he would not be surprised if that increases to 100,000 per day if the trends aren’t reversed.
Fauci’s testimony came one day after Dr. Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the coronavirus is spreading too rapidly and too broadly for the United States to bring it under control.
More than 126,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 and more than 2.5 million have been infected.
See the Tennessee Department of Health website here.
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