TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Kate Prince on Aug 4, 2020

Gov. Bill Lee today said his administration is working on a plan that would allow schools to share data on the number of COVID-19 cases in their facilities, the Tennessean reports. After the release of Lee’s school reopening plan last week, state Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey said Tennessee had no plans to provide the public with such data, saying that decision should be left up to individual school districts. A spokesperson later cited patient privacy as a priority while defending that decision. But, during his weekly press conference today, Lee reversed course, saying he believes “that we have to protect privacy but we also have to be transparent.” Lee said within the next week, his administration will present a plan aimed at "being more transparent" on the school data. His administration has faced criticisms in recent months for refusing to release certain information, including county-level deaths and cases at nursing homes.