Santa Clara County says it's in dire need of more people to volunteer to work as contact tracers as the county begins to lift its shelter-in-place order.
County officials announced last week that they wanted 1,000 unpaid volunteers to help track people who may have been exposed to COVID-19. But only 50 people have currently signed up, according to County Executive Dr. Jeffrey Smith. That's in addition to county staff who have been redeployed as tracers.
At a press conference Wednesday, Supervisor Cindy Chavez said that's enough contact tracers for the average 15 to 30 people who test positive for coronavirus in the county every day. But as health orders are relaxed and people begin to socialize, officials are looking to fill another 800 positions by mid-July.
Smith said contact tracers will not have to come into direct contact with potential patients; they can communicate by phone and over the internet.
— Shannon Lin