Rep. Glen Casada quarantining after COVID-19 exposure, was excused from special session – Tennessean

Rep. Glen Casada says the reason he didn’t attend this past week’s special legislative session is because he was exposed to the coronavirus.

Casada, R-Franklin, on Saturday declined to say how he tested.

The Tennessee General Assembly convened Monday through Wednesday for a special legislative session called by Gov. Bill Lee to take up a handful of bills related to protecting businesses from coronavirus-related lawsuits, increasing penalties for protesters and expanding telemedicine access.

Casada, the former House speaker who resigned from his leadership position last summer, did not attend the session. His absence was excused by House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville.

“I was exposed to covid and did not want to run the risk of exposing anyone else,” Casada said in a statement Saturday, adding that he has no symptoms and feels “fine.”

He said he is in quarantine, but did not directly respond to questions about whether he had tested positive for the virus.

As of Friday, 12 people who work out of the Cordell Hull Building, which includes legislators and staff, had tested positive for COVID-19 since early May. One of those cases was reported this past week, according to Connie Ridley, director of legislative administration.

While legislative leadership has declined to release names of any General Assembly members who have contracted the virus, Rep. Kent Calfee, R-Kingston, announced last month that he had tested positive for the illness.

That came after Calfee and other lawmakers had attended legislative meetings the week before. Many Republican lawmakers have refused to consistently wear masks while in the building.

Joel Ebert contributed.

Reach Natalie Allison at nallison@tennessean.com. Follow her on Twitter at @natalie_allison.

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Published 3:36 PM EDT Aug 15, 2020