Starting at 9 am this morning, Metro is now writing citations for those refusing to follow the mask mandate. There are exceptions for children and those with medical exemptions, but individuals who simply fail to comply with wearing masks in public could be fined $50 for the civil citation.

Metro Nashville

As of this morning, Nashville reports 15,757 confirmed cases of COVID-19, a jump of 284 cases in 24 hours (high ... but seems 'tame' in comparison to the 771 additional cases reported yesterday). There are currently 5,219 active cases in Nashville, 10,390 individuals who have recovered, and 148 deaths (up 5 from yesterday). The Metro COVID-19 Dashboard lists 206 active hospitalizations (up 7 since yesterday).

In Davidson County, 129,802 tests have been administered with a positive rate of 12.1% (steady since yesterday but up from 11.6% last Friday, from 10.7% on July 1 and 9.4% on June 1). However, the 7-day average for positive tests is 18.5%.

On the trend lines, the transmission rate and 14-day new case trend both remain in the red. All capacities: public health, testing, hospital beds and ICU beds remain in the green.

More detailed data is available on the Metro Dashboard. Click here for details.

Masks are required in Nashville, and a number of other surrounding counties have also begun instituting mandatory mask regulations. Additionally, public health officials continue to ask (beg) residents to be vigilant in maintaining social distancing measures, as well as to go out as little as possible, wash hands frequently and stay home if ill. As of today, metro police are authorized to issue civil citations to those who fail to comply with the mask mandate unless the individual has a specific exemption.

Tennessee State

This afternoon, the state reports 69,061 confirmed COVID-19 cases, an increase of 2,273 since yesterday. Additionally, 39,857 have now recovered (up by 1,585 in the last 24 hours), 3,434 have been hospitalized (up 56 since yesterday), and 783 deaths have been reported (up 16 since yesterday). There have been 1,097,053 individuals tested for the coronavirus, which is an addition of 25,733 in a day.

The death rates stands at 1.13%, which has dropped a bit over the last few weeks and is signifcantly lower than many other states with comparable cases as a percent of population. The overall U.S. death rate sits at 3.98% (135,991 deaths out of 3,416,428 total cases as of 12:15 pm today).