Majority of people reached by contact tracers do not cooperate

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - The state is still ramping up its contact tracing program.

But it’s now running into a new problem: Getting information on close contacts from positive patients.

HMSA President and CEO Mark Mugiishi told a House task force on COVID-19 on Monday that the majority of people who are reached by the contact tracers do not cooperate and share information.

He said communication and acceptance are the big barriers.

“First they have to know, then they actually have to understand and then they actually have to care and all that has to turn into compliance,” he said.

“When you think about piercing all four of those levels, it’s not easy."

Other members of the task force said the contact tracing effort has improved dramatically after being shorthanded for many months.

Contact tracing is key to stemming the spread of COVID-19 because it alerts people they may have been exposed to the virus and should take appropriate actions, like isolating and getting tested.

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