Lack of contact tracing hobbles fight against coronavirus

Gov. Ned Lamont’s “road map for reopening” is ambitious and comprehensive. If all the gears sync together, Connecticut could emerge from the coronavirus pandemic in relatively good shape.

But that’s a lot to ask, and as the Courant’s Edmund Mahony and Dave Altimari reported, one key gear is slipping: contact tracing.

The idea is that to properly contain an outbreak like the coronavirus, those who have come into contact with an infected person must be notified and isolated. There are a number of ways to do that, but the state has signed on to a program that is heavily reliant on volunteers, phone calls and a complicated computer system.

And it’s up to the state’s 64 municipal and regional health districts to sort it out. Sadly, they are underprepared, lacking training and volunteers to do the extensive work. Many districts lack basic computer upgrades. And the regional health directors oversee multiple towns — in the case of the Torrington Health District, 18 separate municipalities.

Health directors told The Courant that “they are unable to properly operate the new software program, either because of lack of training or possible bugs in the operating system. Some said they hadn’t been trained. Others said the training was inadequate. One director said he was given a one-hour webinar presentation. Most said they had not been provided with software manuals.

“All of the directors said they have not been given specific offers of assistance from hundreds of volunteers the department said it has recruited, or is in the process of recruiting.”

Farmington Valley Health District Director Jennifer Kertanis said, “You can’t expect systems to just automatically click a switch and be prepared to deal with situations of the magnitude of which we are dealing with when you have disinvested in your public health system for eons.”

This is a critical problem, and it needs to be solved. Plans for different phases of reopening are meaningless — and premature — if this key component isn’t up and running. Without effective contact tracing, more unknowingly infected people, many asymptomatic, will mingle with family, friends and the public without realizing that they could be infecting dozens.

On the other hand, with effective tracing, real strides could be made toward arresting the spread of the virus.

It’s possible that the state’s system could be complemented by other technology-assisted tracing programs. The American Civil Liberties Union recently published a white paper describing the possible benefits and challenges of such a program, including privacy concerns

The city of New Haven independently started up its own contact tracing program and has made thousands of calls to people who have been in contact with COVID-19-positive people. While the numbers appear promising, it’s distressing that the city is going on its own. If its data isn’t plugged into the state system, how effective can it be?

The governor has put forth a grand plan, and grand plans are important — but they are nothing but bluster if the front-line workers don’t have what they need to make them happen and if efforts aren’t properly coordinated statewide.

Other metrics show that Connecticut is succeeding in flattening the curve in many ways. Hospitalizations are down. Deaths are down. Testing is up, even though it needs to improve. But contact tracing is stuck in neutral.

The economy is slowly reopening, and people are beginning to gather in larger groups. Hair salons are set to open this week, as are the casinos. Contact with infected people will increase. We must know the risks.

Talk of new phases of reopening is premature without effective contact tracing. The state must double-down on its efforts. The importance of this one component of the greater plan can’t be underestimated.