Doctors plead with Tennessee governor for stay-at-home order
A man stands in the middle of Broadway to take a picture, where the streets and sidewalks are normally filled Monday, March 23, 2020, in Nashville, Tenn. More cities and counties in Tennessee have issued strict orders for nonessential businesses to shut down temporarily and people to stay at home as much as possible to curb the spread of the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Seated in chairs set eight feet apart, blood donors wait to be taken to one of three mobile blood centers during a blood drive Monday, March 23, 2020 hosted by Marsh Regional Blood Center at the Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tenn. With a nationwide shortage of blood supply growing, the blood drive provides local residents the opportunity to donate in a time of need due to the Coronavirus pandemic. (David Crigger/Bristol Herald Courier via AP)
Alice Compton, with Marsh Regional Blood Center, sanitizes the a door handle of one of the blood mobiles after a blood donor leaves on Monday, March 23, 2020 from a blood drive at the Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tenn. With a nationwide shortage of blood supply growing, the blood drive provides local residents the opportunity to donate in a time of need due to the coronavirus pandemic. (David Crigger/Bristol Herald Courier via AP)
Marsh Regional Blood Center's Tammy Sluder assists Eddie Davidson as he donates blood Monday, March 23, 2020 during a daylong blood drive at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tenn. With a nationwide shortage of blood supply growing, the blood drive provides local residents the opportunity to donate in a time of need due to the coronavirus pandemic. (David Crigger/Bristol Herald Courier via AP)
Seated in chairs set eight feet apart, blood donors wait to be taken to one of three mobile blood centers during a blood drive hosted by Marsh Regional Blood Center at the Bristol Motor Speedway Monday, March 23, 2020. With a nationwide shortage of blood supply growing, the blood drive provides local residents the opportunity to donate in a time of need due to the coronavirus pandemic. (David Crigger/Bristol Herald Courier via AP)
Eddie Davidson donates blood Monday, March 23, 2020 during a daylong blood drive held by Marsh Regional Blood Center at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tenn. With a nationwide shortage of blood supply growing, the blood drive provides local residents the opportunity to donate in a time of need due to the coronavirus pandemic. (David Crigger/Bristol Herald Courier via AP)
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Doctors across Tennessee pleaded with Gov. Bill Lee on Tuesday to take stronger action to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus.
In a webinar shortly before the governor's daily briefing, Dr. Aaron Milstone warned that "without action, tens of thousands of Tennesseans may die of COVID-19.” Milstone is a pulmonary and critical care physician at Williamson Medical Center.
Lee on Sunday urged residents to work from home and ordered bars and restaurants to close for 14 days starting Monday with the exception of drive-thru, take-out and delivery services. Lee's order also closed gyms and fitness centers, and he barred most visitors to nursing homes, retirement homes and long-term care facilities and prohibited social gatherings of 10 or more people.
But a group of more than 2,000 health care providers across the state is asking for an immediate stay-at-home order. In Nashville, Mayor John Cooper on Sunday ordered that all nonessential businesses close for 14 days starting Monday.
Tennessee had 667 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday with two deaths so far. Milstone said Tennessee hospitals have “multiple patients on life support, fighting for their lives with COVID-19.” A majority of the patients are older or have underlying health conditions, but not all, Milstone said.
The global pandemic has killed more than 18,000 people worldwide, according to a running count kept by Johns Hopkins University.
For most people, the virus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For people with existing health problems and older adults, it can cause more severe illness requiring hospitalization.
The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover.
In other developments, Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials said on Tuesday that they are closing the nation's most visited national park for two weeks after efforts to comply with social distancing failed. Around 30,000 people entered the park each day last week and some popular sites like Laurel Falls, Newfound Gap and Cades Cove were congested, according to a park statement.
Meanwhile, the Tennessee Department of Human Services is offering $10 million in emergency grants to licensed childcare agencies. The grants provide money to help with lost income, repairs, supplies and other disaster-related expenses. Grant money is also available for expenses related to recovery from the March 3 tornado.
Agencies can begin applying for the grants immediately. More information is available online.