State of Emergency Remains Through October

The State of Emergency in Tennessee will continue through October with adjustments made to previous executive orders. Governor Bill Lee says businesses in 89 of Tennessee’s 95 counties will no longer have to adhere to social distancing guidelines. However, local governments still have the authority to institute mask requirements. The governor’s latest actions also do not apply to Tennessee’s six populous counties with locally run health departments: Sullivan, Knox, Hamilton, Davidson, Madison and Shelby counties. According to data kept by The Associated Press, there were about 287 new cases per 100,000 people in Tennessee over the past two weeks. That ranks 13th in the country for new cases per capita.