DC expanding contact tracer program today
WASHINGTON - The District is expanding its contact tracer program as part of its campaign to contain the COVID-19 outbreak in the city.
Last week, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that the District had established a team of 65 people – today she announced that it would be expanding to 200.
Ultimately, they believe a force of 900 contact tracers will be required to track the novel coronavirus.
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The mayor said they will be hiring people in three categories – investigators, lead investigators and program managers.
The positions are 13-month terms in D.C. government.
The mayor said those jobs would be posted on the District’s career site on Wednesday.
READ MORE: DC, Maryland and Virginia coronavirus case total latest
"The goal of contact tracing is to identify nearly all cases of COVID-19, isolate infected individuals, and find, and alert their contacts, and then quarantine all the contacts," the mayor said.
The mayor – and other government leaders in the DMV – say a robust contact tracing program will be instrumental in reopening the local economy.
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