If you have tested positive for COVID-19, the Tennessee Department of Health is sharing your information with some law enforcement and first responders in the state.
Knox County Health Department Director Dr. Martha Buchanan said Monday Gov. Bill Lee wanted to make the information available to police and fire to help them be aware of some of the people they were coming in contact with.
Lee signed the Executive Order in late April, allowing the Tennessee Department of Health and law enforcement agencies to enter a memorandum of understanding, or MOU.
"TDH believes these disclosures are necessary to avert a serious threat to health or safety," Shelley Walker, a representative from TDH said in an email. "The list is shared so that first responders can know on the front end whether the situation or household to which they are responding involves positive patients so they can take appropriate precautions."
Buchanan said local health authorities voiced concerns about making that personal information available. One reason -- it could discourage some people who have been cooperating with health authorities from disclosing their social contacts and movements and from getting testing.
The Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators is a group offering opposition, fighting back against the ruling. The group is calling on Governor Lee to work with the caucus and look into how the process could be altered and changed to ensure Tennesseans feel safe and secure.
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The data sharing became public late last week, and it's raised concerns among some in the Hispanic community, for example, about how the information will be used.
The Knoxville Police Department is one agency whose officers have access to such information, but on Tuesday, city officials said the City of Knoxville was opting out of the program.
It's on a secure database that officers can access after they've signed on to a formal, non-disclosure agreement, according to spokesman Scott Erland.
"At no point do officers have access to the entire list provided by the Department of Health. Additionally, officers can only view a name they enter in the database if it matches a name on the list," Erland said.
According to the state, here's a list of the departments that are now getting the information:
Police Department List:
McKenzie
Chattanooga Housing Police
Selmer
Manchester
Milan
Springfield
Portland
Knoxville
Belle Meade
Bolivar
Harriman
Adamsville
Nashville Airport Authority
Dayton
Newport
Savannah
Tiptonville
Medina
Fairfield Glade
Erwin
Covington
Henderson
Sewanee
Brownsville
Crossville
Blaine
Sommerville
Johnson City
Fairview
Austin Peay State University Police
Waverly
Trenton
Collegedale
Humboldt
Huntingdon
East Ridge
County Sheriff List:
Anderson
Bradley
Carroll
Carter
Cocke
Coffee
Crockett
Cumberland
Dekalb
Dickson
Gibson
Grainger
Greene
Hardin
Haywood
Humphreys
McNairy
Monroe
Montgomery
Morgan
Obion
Perry
Putnam
Rhea
Roane
Robertson
Sumner
Union
Van Buren
Washington
Wayne
Weakley