Josh Peterson

The Sportsmen and Businessmen Charitable Organization (SBCO) donated $17,000 to Coffee County and Manchester City Schools’ Family Resource Center and Tullahoma City Schools’ Coordinated School Health. “It is a mission of SBCO’s to support programs that directly assist the children in our community. We are proud to contribute to Coffee County Schools’ Family Resource Center’s ‘Coffee County Student Expo’ program, Manchester City Schools’ Family Resource Center’s ‘WeCare’ program, and Tullahoma City Schools’ Coordinated School Health. Each of their programs are outstanding student support initiatives that continually address the barriers hindering the social, personal, physical, and academic wellbeing of students,” said Carter Sain, SBCO President. The Sportsmen and Businessmen’s Charitable Organization has been serving the Coffee County community for 37 years.

(Pictured below are Front row (L to R) Scott Hargrove, Director of Tullahoma City Schools; Gina Bumbalough, Coordinated School Health, Tullahoma City Schools; Carla Bloom, SBCO Board; Carter Sain, SBCO President; Back row (L to R) Carlan Cotton, Director of Student Support Services, Coffee County Schools; Dr. Charles Lawson, Director of Schools; Leslie Brasfield Coordinated School, Manchester City Schools; Dr. Joey Vaughn, Director of Manchester City Schools; BJ Sylvia, Family Resource Center, Manchester City Schools; and Brandon Hall, SBCO Board. ).

As of 2 p.m. Monday, there are now 18,011 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Tennessee. This includes 301 deaths and 1,489 hospitalizations. There are 9,886 recoveries, leaving 8,125 active cases. An increase of 389 from the previous day.

There have been 337,428 tests performed statewide. This means of all those being tested, about 5.34 percent are testing positive. This is a figure that continues to drop daily. The percentage of positive tests is down slightly today vs. yesterday, even though there is a significant jump in active cases.

In Coffee County, there are 61 confirmed cases of the virus, which is up one from the previous day. There are also 39 recoveries, leaving 22 active cases. This is the same number as the previous day.

There have been a total of 1,872 tests performed in Coffee County, which means the percentage of those testing positive here is about 3.26 percent. This number continues to fall, and is down from 3.28 percent the previous day.

By Nadia Ramlagan, Public News Service

A new report finds 43 million Americans could lose their employer-sponsored health coverage under worst-case-scenario unemployment projections, as the country slides deeper into a potential recession.

The findings from the Urban Institute highlight the crippling effect the coronavirus pandemic is likely to have on families’ access to health care. Eliot Fishman, senior director of health policy at Families USA, said while some individuals may qualify for Medicaid, millions of those likely to become uninsured will face tough choices.

“For people that don’t have health insurance and then have to go to the emergency room or go to the hospital, they are at grave risk financially, but at the same time, they are at grave risk physically,” Fishman said. “And not just them, but their neighbors and their communities are at risk.”

Even before the pandemic, Tennessee had one of the largest uninsured populations in the nation. And in 2019, the number of residents without health insurance climbed to its highest level in 6 years, according to data from the University of Tennessee.

Fishman said states that have chosen not to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act will see a higher number of uninsured residents as COVID-19 continues to paralyze the economy.

“This is not a time to be placing administrative barriers in the way of people accessing health insurance and ultimately accessing health care,” he said.

An estimated 160 million people nationwide under age 65 had health insurance through their employer just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Then, 30 million workers filed for unemployment during March and April, according to federal data.

As of 2 p.m. Sunday, there are now 17,388 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Tennessee. This includes 298 deaths and 1,482 hospitalizations. There are 9,652 recoveries, leaving 7,736 active cases. This means active cases grew by 46 over the weekend.

There have been 325,280 total tests performed in Tennessee. This means of all tests performed, about 5.35 percent of people are testing positive. This is a number that continues to fall as more tests are performed, and is down from 5.48 percent on Friday.

In Coffee County, the number of total cases of the virus held steady at 60 over the weekend, with 38 recoveries. This means there are only 22 active cases in the entire county. There have been 1,828 total tests performed in Coffee County, meaning of the tests performed only about 3.28 percent are testing positive.

Tennessee Highway Patrol has arrested a man after they say he struck a pedestrian while driving and left the scene of the accident.

Gary Driver, age 49, has been arrested and charged after the 1999 Chevrolet Silverado he was allegedly driving on Monday, May 11, on Swan Mill Rd. left the roadway, struck a tree and then struck and killed Mildred Herrin, age 71, of Morrison.

According to a report filed by THP, Herrin was weed-eating property on a bank. Driver then left the scene of the accident.

Driver has been charged with criminal homicide and leaving the scene of a crash involving fatality.

As Tennessee continues to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the state’s Economic Recovery Group announced Friday it will lift capacity restrictions on restaurants and retail to instead focus on social distancing best practices effective May 22 and issue guidelines to facilitate the safe reopening of larger, non-contact attractions on or after May 22.

New Tennessee Pledge guidelines will be released early next week. Six counties – Shelby, Madison, Davidson, Hamilton, Knox and Sullivan – may continue to follow individual, county-specific reopening plans created in consultation with State and local health departments.

“Tennesseans have worked incredibly hard to do their part and help slow the spread of COVID-19 so that our state can begin to reopen. Thanks to their continued efforts, we’re able to allow restaurants and retail businesses to operate at greater capacity and large attractions to open in a safe and thoughtful way,” said Governor Bill Lee. “Our state continues to see downward trends in case growth and meets the White House criteria for a phased reopening. This progress has been hard-won, and we can build upon it by reopening while also maintaining common-sense safety measures like mask-wearing and good hygiene. By taking the Tennessee Pledge, our businesses can reopen in a way that protects the health of their customers and employees, and protects the livelihoods of hard-working Tennesseans.”

The new Large Attractions guidance applies to those businesses that can effectively practice social distancing with strong measures to protect both employees and customers, including racetracks, amusement parks, waterparks, theaters and dinner theaters, auditoriums, large museums and more. Restrictions on social gatherings of more than 10 people remain in place for the time being. Updates to Restaurant Guidance will include a lift on capacity restrictions, allowing for increased service as long as social distancing guidelines are adhered to, including 6 feet between tables.

The Manchester Recreation Center will offer a modified summer day camp this summer, running Mondays through Fridays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 1 through July 31. There will be no camp the week of June 29. Summer camp is open to all children ages 5-12.

Children who attend Manchester City Schools should register Monday through Wednesday from 5-8 p.m. at the Rotary Amphitheater. Children who attend Coffee County Schools register May 21-22 at the Amphitheater.
Cost of registration is one full week – which is $65. Payment is due on Friday for the following week.

All children will be screened with a temperature check each day, hand sanitizing stations will be provided. If children become sick at camp, they will be isolated and must be picked up within an hour.

Children will be broken up into groups of 10 or fewer. Children must bring a face covering, sunscreen, towel, swimsuit, refillable water bottle and lunch. See more details at the bottom of the page. 

 POOLS REOPEN MONDAY, MAY 18

The indoor pools at the Manchester Recreation Department will open Monday, May 18. The center is following Governor Lee’s Tennessee Pledge Exercise Facility guidelines that restrict the number of people in the pools at one time. There is no open swim allowed at this time and reservations are necessary. This is for lap swimming and therapy.

The lap pool will be open for lap swimming from 5-10 a.m. and 5-7 p.m.Monday through Friday. Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon and 1-5 p.m. and Sundays from 10-5 p.m.

You must have a membership pass to make a reservation at this time.

To make a reservation, call 931-728-0273.

The indoor therapy pool will be open from 5-8 a.m. and 5-7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday and again from 1-5 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays.

Only five people will be allowed in the therapy pool per hour.

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDOSHS) announces how Driver Services Centers will operate beginning May 18.

All Driver Services Centers, with the exception of the Shelbyville Driver Services Center remain open and are taking additional precautions to protect the health and safety of customers and our employees.

“We continue to encourage customers to utilize our e-Services portal to complete numerous transactions such as renewals, duplicates, paying reinstatement fees, and completing the new resident application.
We ask the public to be please be patient and understanding as normal services resume,” the department said.

When visiting a center, all customers are required to:

* Wear a cloth face covering provided by the customer
* Be checked for temperature greater than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit
* Answer COVID-19 health screening questions
* Distance at least six feet from others when possible
* Not be experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms
* Use the queuing system to receive notifications as they wait in their vehicle if center has reached limited capacity.

Saturday, May 16: Appointment calendars reopen
* The first available appointments for road skills test will be Monday, June 15. Skills tests appointments must be made in the e-Services portal or by calling (866) 849-3548.
* The Driver Services Appointments system re-launches to include 45 Driver Services Centers and expand appointment services to New Resident, Knowledge Test, Reinstatement (at select centers), and Driver Services (for all other transactions). The first available appointments will be Tuesday, May 26.

Monday, May 18: Select services begin
* Rescheduled skills tests for customers whose appointments were canceled between March 12 and May 15 will begin and be completed by June 8. The Driver Services staff will contact these customers to reschedule skills tests.
* Knowledge tests will be available at all full-service centers. Tests will be available by appointment beginning May 26. Testing will also be offered on select Saturdays between June 13 and August 22. More information will be posted to tn.gov/safety. Information on Proof of school attendance can be found here if schools are closed due to COVID-19.
* New Tennessee residents and new drivers should complete the Driver License Application online before visiting a Driver Services Center. The application is available in the e-Services portal and can be completed on a computer or smartphone.
* E-Tickets will re-launch at all Driver Services Center locations. Applicants may place themselves in line up to two hours before visiting a center by requesting an E-Ticket online but is not an appointment.

Monday, June 15: Road skills tests resume
* Skills tests appointments will resume at all full-service Driver Services Centers. Walk-ins will be offered on a limited basis.

Monday, July 6: REAL ID resumes

* The Department will resume issuing REAL IDs on July 6th. The federal government extended the implementation date of REAL ID to October 1, 2021. For more information on REAL ID and required documents, visit www.tnrealid.gov.

Changes the Department has made at the centers:
* Adding protective screens at examiner counters
* Limiting capacity inside centers based on recommended guidelines
* Providing face shields for examiners performing road skills tests
* Following employer guidelines set by the Tennessee Pledge