Georgia to reopen some businesses as early as Friday

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia's Republican governor announced plans Monday to restart the state's economy before the end of the week, saying many businesses that closed to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus could reopen as early as Friday.

Gov. Brian Kemp's timetable, one of the most aggressive in the nation, would allow gyms, hair salons, bowling alleys, tattoo parlors and other businesses to reopen as long as owners follow strict social-distancing and hygiene requirements. By Monday, movie theaters may resume selling tickets, and restaurants limited to takeout orders could return to limited dine-in service.

In neighboring Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee announced that most businesses will begin reopening as soon as next week.

"In the same way that we carefully closed businesses and urged operations to end to mitigate the virus’s spread, today we’re announcing plans to incrementally and safely reopen sectors of our economy," Kemp said.

Bars, nightclubs and live performance venues will remain closed.

Kemp’s action comes a month after he closed many businesses and not quite three weeks after he issued a shelter-at-home order that will remain in place until April 30. Kemp said elderly and medically fragile people should continue to stay at home until May 13.

The governor said a decline in emergency room visits by people with flu-like symptoms indicates that infections are coming down. But he acknowledged Georgia has lagged when it comes to COVID-19 testing and announced new initiatives to ramp it up.

He said the state medical college in Augusta will begin producing thousands of swabs each day for collecting test samples. The school will also offer an online app statewide that would let people with symptoms consult with a clinician and be referred for testing if...