Going into the holiday weekend, confirmed coronavirus cases continue to rise at an increasingly rapid pace. In Nashville, the transmission rate and 14-day new case trend, which were already in the yellow, remain there. Hospital ICU bed capacity slipped into the yellow for the first time. Public health capacity, testing capacity and hospital floor bed capacity remain in the green.

At the state level, Gov. Bill Lee extended the emergency declaration related to COVID-19 with Executive Order 50 on June 29. The extension runs until Aug. 29/ Today, he announced liability protections for hospitals and healthcare providers with Executive Order 53 (see statement from THA below).

Metro Nashville

The city has surpassed 10,000 confirmed cases as of today. Nashville reports 10,148 cases, a jump of 343 in 24 hours. There are currently 2,921 active cases in Nashville, 7,119 individuals who have recovered, and 108 deaths.

In Davidson County, 94,778 tests have been administered with a positive rate of 10.7% (up from 9.4% on June 1).

Masks are now "mandatory" in Nashville, but the list of exceptions is long. In addition to wearing a mask, public health officials ask residents to continue social distancing measures, go out as little as possible, wash hands frequently and stay home if ill.

Tennessee State

As of this afternoon, the state had confirmed 45,315 cases, an increase of 1,806 since yesterday. Tennessee has recorded 609 deaths (up 5 in 24 hours). There have been 2,715 hospitalizations across Tennessee (up 50 in 24 hours) and 28,282 recovered (an increase of 684 in 24 hours). A total of 817,522 Tennesseans have been tested for COVID-19 (an increase of 24,743 since yesterday).

Statewide death rates have dropped to 1.3 percent, down from 1.46 last week and from 1.6 for much of the five weeks prior to that.

In response to Gov. Lee's latest executive order, Tennessee Hospital Association President & CEO Wendy Long, MD, issued the following statement:

"Tennessee's hospitals are grateful to Governor Lee for his latest executive action that recognizes the immense pressures faced by healthcare providers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. The liability protections granted in Executive Order 53 will provide hospitals and healthcare professionals with appropriate safeguards as providers respond to the growing number of cases and hospitalizations across our state.

"Continually evolving health guidance from federal and state agencies helps ensure appropriate and effective treatment of all patients - both COVID-19-positive and those receiving care for non-virus-related conditions. However, as a result of the changing guidance in the midst of the pandemic, it is vitally important to protect healthcare providers from baseless or opportunistic litigation.

"Today's order rightly does not extend protections in cases of gross negligence or willful misconduct, which underscores the commitment of hospitals to provide the safest and most effective care despite the challenges of our current environment.

"I am incredibly proud of the work of hospitals over the past four months to care for communities and face the biggest public health crisis of our generation. THA and its members remain unwavering in our commitment to fight COVID-19 and support the health needs of all Tennesseans."