Virginia’s new COVID-19 CovidWise location-based tracing app from Apple andGoogle

Via the Wavy… Virginia has rolled out a smartphone app to automatically notify people if they might have been exposed to the coronavirus, becoming the first U.S. state to use new pandemic technology created by Apple and Google.

The Covidwise Virginia app. https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/covidwise/

The Covidwise app was available on the tech giants’ app stores Wednesday ahead of an expected announcement from Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam.

How it works.

Jeff Stover, Executive Program Advisor to the Commissioner at the Virginia Department of Heath, explained how the technology works in a press briefing on Wednesday. When a person tests positive for the virus, he said a contact tracer will reach out and encourage them to download the app if they haven’t already. If they agree, Stover said they will be given a 6-digit pin number unique to their lab result that the user will be in charge of entering.

Once the pin is submitted, Stover said the app will notify other users of potential exposure, keeping the identity of the person who tested positive anonymous. He said the app notifies ‘close contacts’ using Bluetooth keys or ‘anonymous tokens’ that can determine which phones were within 6 feet of a positive case for 15 minutes or more–criteria based on CDC guidelines. (Source: Way)

See the app on Google Play