THREAD: There’s confusion about a proposal in our plan to reopen. Some observers refer to “GPS tracking” of individuals in describing one idea in the report. That's not in our report. Instead we talk about using technology to help oversee case-based containment strategies. 1/6
The idea is to use phone apps tied to cell phones to help enforce isolation in people with known disease. South Korea, Israel already do this – with success. This is a key element of case-based interventions aimed at isolating individuals with disease to reduce spread. 2/6
All public health officials are very familiar with these tools and use them globally. In our report, we specifically talk about using them for home isolation in people with confirmed #COVID19 diagnosis. We limit our proposal to people who are already ordered to stay home. 3/6
I encourage anyone commenting on this proposal to read our report, it can be found here: aei.org/research-produ… 4/6
In it, we write: "Monitoring community adherence to physical distancing and stay-at-home advisories, adjusting risk messaging as appropriate, and identifying alternative incentives for compliance if needed." Note it says nothing about phones or GPS or tracking any individual 5/6
For those who want a broader understanding of these approaches, in a general press article, here is a good overview of the tools in use in other countries: washingtonpost.com/technology/202…
