Thread by @DearPandemic

Q: What does #ContactTracing look like now, what could it look like in the future and do I need to be worried about privacy?

A: When an individual tests positive for #COVID, staff reach out to identify their close contacts/public spaces they may have visited while contagious.

Based on this information, staff will determine if a contact is at low, medium or high risk of contracting #Covid_19. Staff will contact people who are at medium or high risk to notify them and provide instructions for self-quarantine.

More here about how #coronavirus contacts are traced: tmj4.com/news/coronavir…

Some states, like Massachusetts, are hiring additional #contact_tracing staff. This allows them to quickly identify the contacts of new cases and direct them to #SelfQuarantine which is key to stopping further transmission: npr.org/sections/healt…

Having adequate staff and systems in place for contact tracing can enable us to:
🔎identify potential cases (contacts to cases that haven't yet developed symptoms)
👥relax social distancing measures
👩‍👩‍👧‍👦deal with larger pools of contacts as more social interactions take place.

What about electronic apps? Some countries, like #Germany, have started to utilize technology to aid in the contact tracing process npr.org/sections/coron…

Users of the #PEPP Pan-European Privacy Preserving Proximity Tracing system (pepp-pt.org) log in using Bluetooth technology and receive a message if they've been in close contact with someone who tested positive for #COVIDー19.

With proper privacy protections, such technology could notify individuals that were in contact with the virus (even in public spaces/events!) and encourage them to self-quarantine. Quicker #SelfIsolation can #StopTheSpread before individuals develop symptoms and/or are tested.