They asked the governor to issue a “Stay at Home” order, now the Tennessee Medical Association is urging city and county officials to request authority from Governor Bill Lee to allow them to issue a “Stay at Home” in their city or county because of the rising number of individuals with coronavirus.

The letter from the Tennessee Medical Association is as follows:

“In order to attempt to attempt to slow the spread of COVID-19 in Tennessee, the Tennessee Medical Association would recommend each of you to request authority from the Governor to allow you to issue a Stay at Home or similar order for your jurisdiction, like those now in place in Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville and Franklin. The only effective mechanism to slow the virus to prevent an overwhelming influx of critically ill patients in our health care system is increased social distancing, which can be enhanced by such orders. Ideally, we would recommend that these orders close all non-essential businesses, limit all non-essential activities and gatherings of any size, and impose a 14-day self-quarantine on anyone entering our state from another state or country with few expectations, such as our trucking and delivery systems. In the absence of a state-wide order at this point, your local orders can help protect our population and save lives.”

The letter is signed by Tennessee Medical Association President Elise Denneny, M.D., President-Elect M. Kevin Smith, M.D., and more than 20 medical related organizations.