Tennessee COVID-19 cases surpass 150,000, more than 1,700 deaths reported

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - According to health officials, Tennessee’s coronavirus case count has surpassed 150,000 since the start of the pandemic.

The Tennessee Department of Health announced 1,636 new cases and 28 more related deaths of as Friday afternoon.

TDH is reporting 150,815 total cases and 1,701 total deaths, with 6,751 hospitalizations,

More than 2.1 million tests have been administered across the state and so far, 113,313 Tennesseans have recovered from the virus.

The Shelby County Health Department reported five new coronavirus-related deaths Friday, bringing the county’s death toll to 375 since the beginning of the pandemic.

Shelby County has had 27,502 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 149 new cases reported Friday. There are currently 2,889 active cases in the county.

SCHD reports 89 percent utilization of acute care beds and 87 percent of ICU beds at Mid-South hospitals. COVID-19 patients account for 7 percent and 25 percent of those beds, respectively.

Shelby County’s weekly positivity rate dropped slightly from 11.6% to 11.3% for the week ending Aug. 22. It peaked the week ending July 18 at 16%. That’s when Shelby County issued its mandatory mask order and closed bars and limited-service restaurants. The weekly positivity rate has declined each week since.

The health department is tracking active clusters of COVID-19 at 28 long-term care facilities. Clusters are resolved at another 19 facilities.

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