More Tennessee Counties, Cities Enter ‘Red Zone’

The White House has added more Tennessee communities to its COVID-19 “red zone.” Tennessee Health Commissioner Lisa Piercey says the group of 10 cities and 24 counties goes beyond Nashville and Memphis.

“Places like Cleveland and Morristown and Brownsville — smaller cities that really haven’t been on the radar — are starting to come up.”

The White House Report defines “red zones” as areas that report 100 or more cases per 100 thousand residents in a week. Tennessee has even more counties on the “yellow” list, which is between 10 and 100 cases per 100k residents.

Piercey says it shows an “incredibly pressing” need for people to take individual action. The state has so far relied on individual responsibility and county mayors to make decisions on safety protocols, like mask wearing.