NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – The Tennessee Department of Health has confirmed additional cases and deaths related to COVID-19 across the state for Sunday, January 24.
The health department reported 2,841 new cases, bringing the state to 708,717 total cases. Of those cases, 603,856 are confirmed and 104,861 are probable.
TDH also confirmed 40 additional deaths, bringing Tennessee up to 8,859 total deaths.
Out of the confirmed positive cases, 654,335 are listed as inactive/recovered, an increase of 3,052 in the last 24 hours.
There are 2,128 people currently hospitalized in the state.
Tennessee has processed 6,184,590 tests. The latest update added 25,830 tests to the state’s total.
Vaccine Tracker
TDH updated Tennessee’s COVID-19 Vaccination Plan on Friday.
Protecting Medically Fragile Children and Adults
Tennessee has added people living in households with medically fragile children to Phase 1c of the state’s COVID-19 Vaccination Plan. Vaccination of their parents, caregivers and other household residents will help protect these children, as at this time no COVID-19 vaccine has been approved for use in children under age 16. Phase 1c also includes people age 16 and older who have medical conditions that put them at high risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19. This group is further defined in the updated plan, and occurs earlier in Tennessee’s plan than in federal vaccination recommendations.
Correctional Officers and Jailers in Phase 1a1
Tennessee correctional officers and jailers have been added to Phase 1a1 of Tennessee’s COVID-19 Vaccination Plan. These Tennesseans work in settings and roles that require frequent direct public exposure through close contact in confined spaces, placing them at high risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19.
Prioritizing Age-Based Risk
Age-based criteria run concurrently to the phases in age brackets beginning with those aged 75 and above.
Appointments for Tennesseans eligible under the Phase 1 rollout of the vaccine can sign up for an appointment online.
And to see what the vaccine availability is in your county, click here.
During Thursday’s Metro Coronavirus Task Force update, local officials deemed vaccines as the No. 1 tool to getting back to some sort of “normal life.” However, the vaccine is in short supply, leaving many wondering if they will ever receive one at all.
Mass COVID-19 vaccination sites are popping up across the country but not here in Tennessee. Places like Nissan Stadium in Nashville will not be used as a mass vaccination super site, at least for now. The Tennessee Department of Health said mass vaccination centers are not on its radar at this time. The Metro Nashville Public Health Department told News 2 large venues could cause huge crowds and become super spreader events if not managed properly.
COVID-19 in Tennessee
On Tuesday, Governor Bill Lee extended an executive order, which added additional restrictions on who may attend sporting events in the state.
A more contagious strain of COVID-19 could sweep through the country and become the dominant variant of the virus by March, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
TDH announced two confirmed cases of the new strain in the state on Thursday, making Tennessee one of more than 20 states in the country reporting COVID-19 cases caused by variants.
COVID-19 in Nashville
Metro Schools will continue to hold all classes in the virtual environment stating the decision to continue online classes is due to the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19 throughout Nashville and the state of Tennessee.
While MNPS say their COVID-19 Risk Score remains too high to go back, some parents believe the numbers the district should be focusing on are their children’s grades. As of January 7, 18.4 percent of the district was marked as failing.
A Nashville-based company has launched new technology to ease problems with the COVID-19 vaccine distribution.
Overcoming COVID
With vaccinations now underway, what will life in Nashville be like six months from now? News 2 looked at what it might take for Middle Tennessee to return to some form of “normalcy” in a special report – Overcoming COVID: A Peek Into the Future.
