The Jerusalem Post

‘ 50% of corona carriers lie during epidemiolo­gical quiz’

- • By CELIA JEAN

At least 50% of people infected with the coronaviru­s lie during their epidemiolo­gical investigat­ion, Home Front Command said Thursday.

The tracing of the chain of infection has been severely impacted by people lying during investigat­ions, Home Front Command said, adding that it could not properly track the people they may have been in contact with. As a result, it could not warn people to enter quarantine before infecting others.

Each investigat­or spends up to four hours per investigat­ion. On occasion it can take less, but this is because after an investigat­or calls a coronaviru­s patient, the patient hangs up.

A citizen is not obligated to cooperate with an epidemiolo­gical investigat­or.

Epidemiolo­gical investigat­ors are tasked with breaking the chain of infection. However, the task cannot be done without the cooperatio­n of those being investigat­ed, Home Front Command said.

Of those who are infected, at least half of them refuse to admit who they have been in contact with.

Up to 30% of people found in the presence of a coronaviru­s patient during an investigat­ion refuse to be examined, the coronaviru­s cabinet reported.

On an average day, at least three people required to be isolated are found per coronaviru­s patient, due mainly to the recent lockdown. But at least seven to 10 people per coronaviru­s patient should require isolation, according to Home Front Command.

Without the proper cooperatio­n of those being investigat­ed, the daily morbidity rate will begin to rise in the winter, it said.

Home Front Command said it intends to conduct up to 4,000 investigat­ions per day during the winter and complete each one within 32 hours. It plans to recruit up to 3,000 investigat­ors within two weeks.

Home Front Command said it hopes to administer about 120,000 coronaviru­s tests daily by next month and have the results within 12 hours.

 ?? ( Marc Israel Sellem/ The Jerusalem Post) ?? BORDER POLICE officers check a pedestrian’s informatio­n in downtown Jerusalem yesterday.
( Marc Israel Sellem/ The Jerusalem Post) BORDER POLICE officers check a pedestrian’s informatio­n in downtown Jerusalem yesterday.

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