NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Governor Bill Lee began his daily COVID-19 briefing by urging residents to stay home, saying "Heroes stay home...Lives are at stake."
Lee said the Unified Command Group has made significant gains in securing personal protective equipment for health care workers and critical personnel across the state. More than 18,000,000 PPE items totaling over $45 million have been acquired.
Every county has received a shipment of PPE, according to the governor, with the vast majority of supplies continuing to be delivered to rural areas with Unified Command reporting 80-90% of supplies.
Tennessee is also receiving face sheilds and masks through 3D printing efforts at higher education institutions and private companies. Lee said 10,000 face shields have been produced thus far with more on the way.
He also announced additional funding coming to the state's health care safety net, which will help any resident without health care receive testing and care.
The 1135 waiver for TennCare will give the state flexibilities targeted toward providers and designed to ensure sufficient health care services are available through this pandemic.
For more information on TennCare actions related to COVID-19 go here [tn.gov]. For more information on the approval of the 1135 waiver go here [tn.gov].
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See all our coronavirus coverage here
COUNTY-BY-COUNTY CASES IN TENNESSEE
What is COVID-19 (a.k.a. the new coronavirus?)
According to the World Health Organization, coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases. Examples include the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV)and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans. COVID-19 stands for "Coronavirus disease 2019," which is when this strain of the coronavirus was discovered.
What are the symptoms?
The CDC says patients confirmed to have the 2019-nCoV reportedly had mild to severe respiratory illness with:
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Or at least two of the following symptoms:
- Fever
- Chills
- Repeated shaking with chills
- Muscle pain
- Headache
- Sore throat
- New loss of taste or smell
At this time, the CDC believes symptoms could appear as soon as two days after exposure, or as long as 14 days.
Prevention
The CDC is recommending "common sense" measures such as:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
