August 31, 2020 – With nearly a third of Illinois counties at a warning level, more contact tracing for COVID-19 is being used statewide. The IDPH said that it is awarding $300 million in grants to local health departments to use for contact tracing. County officials across the state have said the contact tracing program only involves phone calls or text messages; not any of the phone apps for tracking a person’s movements with GPS or Bluetooth.
Brandi Binkley, Public Health Administrator of the Macon County Health Department, said they are currently hiring contact tracers, as well as COVID Enforcement Support. They currently employ a total of 42 contact tracers who are training to complete contact tracing and they are in the process of hiring more contact tracers. COVID Enforcement Support will be used to assist with complaints of non-compliance and follow-up relating to the complaints.
The Macon County Health Department reminds you:
- It is important for people to stay home and quarantined while awaiting test results. If someone is symptomatic, they should be staying home.
- Once you know you are positive, you should immediately begin isolating yourself. Do not wait to receive a call to tell you to do so.
- If you have discovered you are a close contact of someone who has received a positive test result, you should immediately start quarantining. Do not wait for a contact tracer to call you to do that. If you are aware of exposure to someone with COVID-19, proactively begin quarantine.
