NASHVILLE — After 33 years of service, Hamilton County’s 5,812-square-foot Medical Examiner’s Office building is no longer adequate to meet today’s demands, officials say.
Forensic doctors and staff are housed in the cramped space while also battling heating, air, refrigeration and safety issues as well as other problems at the aging facility amid rising demands for services, officials say. The office on Amnicola Highway also lacks capacity to assist nearby counties with investigations and autopsies to determine causes of death in areas ranging from infectious diseases like COVID-19 to homicides.
But that’s expected to change with the help of money from Uncle Sam.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and top state lawmakers are finalizing plans to use $10 million from the state’s pool of remaining federal American Rescue Plan Act dollars to pay most of the costs of a proposal from Hamilton County government for support to build a new, $13.8 million, 14,244-square-foot state-of-the art facility.