State could lift nursing home visitor restrictions within days

State Department of Health official on Monday announced that COVID-19 visitation restrictions at nursing homes and long-term care facilities across the state that have been in place in various forms since the start of the pandemic could end as soon as this weekend.

Tennessee Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey said Monday that the state is nearly finished with fully vaccinating everyone living in nursing homes and other, long-term care facilities across the state. Piercey estimated that about 25% of people living in such facilities are waiting to receive their second dose of the vaccine.

At the current schedule, Piercey said officials expect to deliver the remaining second doses to residents of long-term care facilities by this Sunday, February 28. Once that happens, Piercey said during a media briefing that the state will then be able to relax its visitation restrictions to nursing homes and other facilities, which will effectively end them as a matter of state policy.

While the state may loosen its restrictions, it does not not necessarily mean all facilities will allow visitors next week. Dr. Piercey says that owners and operators of such facilities can still choose to restrict visitors and keep current, company-mandated guidelines in place to keep their residents and employees health