UPDATE: Tennessee Department of Health reverses coronavirus policy

UPDATE: According to the Associated Press, in a surprise reversal Tuesday, Tennessee’s top health agency announced that it will provide locations for where coronavirus cases had been confirmed, after initially refusing to do so.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee is limiting what information it releases about confirmed coronavirus cases, becoming an outlier compared to most states and sparking alarm among some officials worried the move will aggravate public mistrust.

The debate comes as Tennessee’s Department of Health announced this week it will no longer identify the county of where a new COVID-19 case is confirmed.

Critics say the move puts the public in the dark at what areas they may want to avoid.

However, the Tennessee Department of Health says the goal is to protect patient privacy.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Tennessee had a total of seven COVID-19 cases.