Coronavirus daily blog, March 24: SCS to remain closed ‘until further notice’
The number of confirmed cases in Shelby County is up to 135; confirmed cases are up to 29 in DeSoto County.
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Sam Stockard is a Nashville-based reporter with more than 30 years of journalism experience as a writer, editor and columnist covering the state Legislature and Tennessee politics for The Daily Memphian.
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The number of confirmed cases in Shelby County is up to 135; confirmed cases are up to 29 in DeSoto County.
The Tennessee Department of Health releases the latest numbers: 93 cases of coronavirus confirmed in Shelby County and 615 cases in Tennessee.
With July early voting four months away, state Rep. London Lamar is questioning whether the Secretary of State’s Office is prepared to deal with a pandemic, saying universal absentee voting is needed to avoid risking people's lives.
In Memphis, hospitals are searching for new vendors, buying outside their purchasing organization lists.
Lee said he hopes to free up protective devices and ventilators for the response to the coronavirus. In addition, he said Tennessee colleges of applied technology are using 3-D equipment to print face shields.
Memphis: 66
DeSoto: 18
Tipton: 5
Fayette: 3
Marshall: 3
Crittenden: 1
The total number of Shelby County cases is up to 30, and Shelby County Schools is scrapping its plan to provide lunches for students due to a Central Nutrition Center employee testing positive for COVID-19.
Gov. Bill Lee signed an executive order Sunday, March 22, calling for businesses across the state to use "alternative business models" beginning Monday. Like local orders already in place, it bans dine-in services at restaurants statewide.
Delayed by the COVID-19 crisis, legislation such as the “constitutional carry” bill allowing people to carry handguns without a permit is expected to revive when lawmakers return to Nashville this summer after a long recess.
Lt. Gov. Randy McNally calls it the “black swan,” an unforeseen event capable of shaking Tennessee’s foundation, yet one the state must be prepared to handle, this time using a military approach on a worldwide scale.
Gov. Bill Lee worked with the state attorney general and comptroller on an executive order to put electronic government meetings rules in place after legislation failed Thursday in the final hours of the General Assembly session
Mayor Jim Strickland announces churches, dine-in restaurants and gyms must close.
Facing the biggest state and national emergency in decades, the Tennessee Legislature adopted a $39.8 billion budget Thursday night, March 19, and vacated the State Capitol as COVID-19 continued to spread.
With COVID-19 spreading statewide, the governor signed an executive order Thursday to expand the state’s health care capacity and give people more time to renew driver’s licenses and car tags. It even allows the Parole Board to hold closed meetings.
Gov. Bill Lee issued a disaster declaration Wednesday, enabling small businesses to seek federal loans as coronavirus cases are expected to rise amid increased testing.
House Republicans met secretly Thursday and agreed to cut nearly $1 billion from the state budget but leave education voucher funding in place. Teacher pay raises would be cut by half.
Gov. Bill Lee introduced a “no-growth” budget for the next fiscal year, reducing a 3.1% revenue growth projection to zero and eliminating dozens of spending proposals while spending hundreds of millions to respond to the COVID-19 emergency.
COVID-19, or coronavirus, testing has been slow and frustrating. Here's what you need to know about how it works.