Maplab
Who Wants to Be a Contact Tracer?
To reopen, the U.S. needs to quickly train and deploy thousands of people to track potential Covid-19 infections — because technology alone can’t do the job.
It starts with a phone call. You may have been in contact with someone who has coronavirus, a kind-sounding voice tells you: You should self-isolate and get tested for Covid-19, if possible. The caller is careful not to reveal the identity of the infected individual you’ve crossed paths with; if they’re good at their job, they’re sensitive both to your fears and the others’ privacy.
The voice on the line is a contact tracer — a person trained to track down and notify all the people who might have been exposed to coronavirus by someone who’s known to have the infection.