All of Tennessee is experiencing a COVID-19 case and hospitalization surge, and the hardest-hit areas continue to be those without public face mask requirements, according to a report from Vanderbilt University researchers released on Tuesday.
“We’ve seen a statewide increase in hospitalizations since early October, indicating that masking alone is not sufficient to curb further spread of the virus,” John Graves, associate professor of health policy at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, said in a news release. “But it’s very clear that areas where masking requirements have remained in place have seen much lower growth in COVID-19 hospitalizations.”
Several Tennessee hospitals were forced to either scale back or stop elective surgeries this week as a result of the surge, including Ballad Health’s hospitals in Kingsport, Bristol and Johnson City.
“To our communities, we plead with you to stay home, social distance, wash your hands and wear masks in public. It is up to all of us to ensure that our hospitals don’t become overwhelmed so we can continue to provide the best possible care to all patients,” Ballad Health said in a tweet on Monday.
Also on Monday, Maury Regional Medical Center in Columbia suspended all elective procedures that require an overnight stay after the hospital set a record of 50 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 last week, according to an announcement on the hospital’s website.