Governor Bill Lee announced Monday afternoon he is extending Tennessee's Stay at Home order until April 30. He is hoping to reopen the economy beginning in May.
The governor said Tennessee is "not out of the woods yet," but said he has seen positive trends in the number of COVID-19 cases.
Because of that, Gov. Lee said he would extend his Stay at Home order until at least April 30, saying there is a "clear but complicated" task ahead to figure out how to allow Tennesseans to conduct business again.
"We have to remain vigilant with social distancing, or the disease could come roaring back and erase our progress," he said. Lee said there would likely need to be prevention measures in place until a vaccine or therapy was available to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Gov. Lee said he is following White House guidance in extending the order, but said he is coordinating with leaders to begin reopening the economy starting in May — calling it a "phased reboot."
Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs said that he understood the Governor's decision to extend the stay-at-home order, but also emphasized that economic shut-down is not sustainable.
"We don't have to make a choice between a healthy economy and healthy people," Jacobs said in a press release. "There is a way to combat the virus without killing the economy. I look forward to helping create the plan that enables Knox County to do this."
He announced an Economic Recovery Group which will work with healthcare officials and representatives from several industries to develop a plan on reopening the economy. The group will work on maintaining economic activity within Tennessee, allowing the Unified Command group to focus on managing the spread of COVID-19.
Essential businesses should get guidance on how to operate with an increase in activity going forward. Lee emphasized that social distancing efforts would stay in place even as the Economic Recovery Group works on restarting Tennessee's economy.
"This will be a way of life for Tennesseans going forward," Lee said.
Expanded coronavirus testing is an important part of Governor Lee's efforts to restart the economy. After weeks of working to expand testing across Tennessee, health officials said they are getting to a point where if someone thinks they should be tested for coronavirus, they can get one.
The governor said there would need to be a balance between safety and business. He said there are a number of considerations that would have to be taken when making any decisions on how to reopen the economy safely, but said it "can't remain closed for months."