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Region still in red phase as need for contact tracing sought

Isabel Braverman - Staff Writer
Posted 5/21/20

SULLIVAN COUNTY — The state has announced a plan for reopening the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic and now regions work toward meeting all seven metrics in order to begin Phase I of reopening. …

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Region still in red phase as need for contact tracing sought

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SULLIVAN COUNTY — The state has announced a plan for reopening the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic and now regions work toward meeting all seven metrics in order to begin Phase I of reopening. Sullivan County is part of the Mid-Hudson Region and, as of press time Thursday afternoon, has met five of the seven metrics.

Seven regions across the state have met all seven metrics and have already begun operations in Phase I, which includes construction, curbside retail and agriculture.

The Mid-Hudson Region joins Long Island and New York City in regions still in the red phase. New York City is the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the nation, with almost 200,000 reported cases.

“As more regions and businesses across the state become eligible to begin reopening, New Yorkers are getting excited, but we must not forget the hard work we've done and the pain we've experienced for the last two months," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. "Everything that we did - the closings, social distancing and other measures - were tough but necessary, and because of it we saved lives and we flattened the curve.”

Sullivan County yesterday had 264 active cases, which is a drop from the day before. One of the metrics the region has not yet met is a 14-day decline in deaths. There have been a total of 29 deaths in the county, however it stayed at 28 for eight days.

As of Tuesday (the latest data) the region has seen no new deaths for five days, meaning it still has some time to go before meeting the 14-day goal. Another metric that still needs to be met is obtaining contact tracers for 30 per 100,000 residents.

Sullivan County Public Health Director Nancy McGraw announced that New York State has launched a new and urgent effort to curb the spread of COVID-19.

The state plans to hire a team of 6,400 to 17,000 staff Statewide, depending on the projected number of COVID-19 cases, to support the NYS Department of Health (NYSDOH) and local health departments to perform contact tracing in communities across NYS.

To meet the scale and scope of this program, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Vital Strategies: Resolve to Save Lives and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health will support building the team through a three-step process: recruitment, interviewing and training.

“The aim of this initiative will be to call every person diagnosed with COVID-19, establish all contacts of this person, and proceed to call and maintain ongoing communication with every contact,” McGraw explained, based on guidance from NYSDOH. “In addition, the team will support the isolation and quarantine of individuals, as appropriate, in cooperation with Public Health Services. This includes virtual needs checks and referral to community resources as needed.”

“This contact tracing initiative is in tandem with Statewide efforts to increase testing, improve communication and knowledge of effective strategies to reduce transmission, and implementation of isolation and quarantine,” added District 2 Legislator Nadia Rajsz, who chairs the Legislature's Health & Family Services Committee. “This will fortify efforts to control the pandemic in NYS.”

The first goal is to help the State identify and recruit a robust Contact Tracing team. To be considered, candidates must be a New York State resident 18 years of age or older; meet the position description requirement; go through an interview process; and complete a training and certification program.

New York State is looking to immediately fill the following paid roles:

• Contact Tracers: reach out to the contacts of anyone diagnosed with COVID-19 to assess symptoms, ensure compliance with quarantine and determine social support needs.

• Team Supervisors: lead a team of 20 Contact Tracers, and one Community Support Specialist who are working remotely using digital tools.

• Community Support Specialists: work with the team and the local health departments to address the physical/mental health and social/human service needs of those contacted, especially those who are under isolation or quarantine.

If you or someone you know in New York State is interested in applying to be a part of the Contact Tracing team, visit https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/get-involved-how-you-can-help.

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