A sign seen near Twin Lakes on Sept. 17 encourages residents to wear cloth face coverings while in public. Health officials are asking Alaskans for help with contact tracing. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)

A sign seen near Twin Lakes on Sept. 17 encourages residents to wear cloth face coverings while in public. Health officials are asking Alaskans for help with contact tracing. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire File)

Health officials seek help with virus notification

Recent surge created a contact tracing backlog.

By BECKY BOHRER

Associated Press

State health officials are asking Alaskans who test positive for COVID-19 to notify people they have been in close contact with because a surge in cases has strained public health resources and created a backlog in contact tracing investigations.

Dr. Joe McLaughlin, the state epidemiologist, said contact tracers “have been forced to triage cases to ensure they are reaching the people most at risk for severe symptoms and those most likely to spread the disease.”

“For newly reported cases, contact tracers try to make first contact the day the cases are reported, as well as provide monitoring calls to some of the highest risk individuals,” he said in a statement. “However, due to the delays in the process and some calls that can’t be initiated that first day, we recommend Alaskans call their own close contacts.”

[Health officials say vaccine could come next month]

A state health department spokesperson did not immediately answer questions about the backlog, including whether additional resources announced in late October were in place. At that time, Gov. Mike Dunleavy and the state health department said they planned to expand contact tracing using the National Guard and University of Alaska Anchorage staff.

The state health department reported 578 new COVID-19 cases among residents, bringing the total since the start of the pandemic to nearly 27,670. There have been 115 deaths among residents, including 13 announced Tuesday.

All regions of Alaska are under what the health department refers to as high alert, with widespread community transmission.

Health officials previously urged residents to help contact tracers by answering their phones and providing accurate information. Some people don’t want to participate in contract tracing, McLaughlin has said, possibly because of job-related pressures or COVID-19 “fatigue” — being tired of dealing with the pandemic.

Anyone can get COVID-19, and there “should be no stigma associated with this highly infectious disease,” Alaska’s chief medical officer, Dr. Anne Zink, said in a news release.

The health department said other states also are facing contact tracing challenges.

Health officials are urging Alaskans with a new symptom, such as fatigue, fever or shortness of breath, even if mild, to get tested and stay home while awaiting results. If someone tests positive, they are encouraged to contact those they have been within 6 feet of for longer than 15 minutes so those people can quarantine and get tested.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.

More in News

(Juneau Empire file photo)
Aurora forecast through the week of Nov. 3

These forecasts are courtesy of the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Geophysical Institute… Continue reading

Aurelie Alexander photographs a helicopter hoisting cellular equipment onto the roof of the Marine View building at midday Wednesday. As a resident of the apartment/office building, she and others were notified to leave the building during the helicopter operation. (Laurie Craig / Juneau Empire)
Hovering around downtown for better phone service

New AT&T equipment installed atop Marine View Building joins other telecom upgrades downtown.

The Columbia is scheduled to replace the Kennicott on the mainline ferry route between Southeast Alaska and Bellingham, Washington, starting in mid-December. (Alaska Marine Highway System photo)
Proposed summer ferry schedule for 2025 remains much the same, with Columbia replacing Kennicott

Public comments being accepted until Nov. 12, with virtual meetings scheduled that day.

A simulated photo shows the tailings stack and other features of Hecla Greens Creek Mine under the final notice of decision for expanding the mine announced Thursday by the U.S Forest Service. The expansion will extend the life of the mine up to 18 years. (U.S. Forest Service)
Extending Greens Creek Mine production for 12 to 18 years gets final OK from Forest Service

Agency says there will also be more habitat protection measures and mine waste disposal capacity.

A sperm whale is seen in an undated photo published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (NOAA photo)
Southeast Alaska fisher could get six months in prison after attempting to kill sperm whale

Federal prosecutors are recommending that an Alaska fisher serve six months in… Continue reading

Voters at Anchorage City Hall wait in line to cast their ballots on Nov. 4, 2024, the day before Election Day. City Hall, in downtown Anchorage, was one of the designated early voting sites in the state’s largest city. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
No leaders change as 1,500 more ballots are added to Alaska’s election count

Almost 46,000 votes cast before Election Day remain uncounted, according to absentee and early vote figures.

A weather-beaten Kamala Harris campaign sign is seen on the railing along a downtown street on Wednesday. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
How Juneau voted: Support for Trump varies between 55% near airport to 15.7% in downtown precinct

Voters in two local districts favor keeping ranked choice voting, while statewide residents evenly split.

The Alaska governor’s mansion on Wednesday. Gov. Mike Dunleavy is considered a contender for a post in Donald Trump’s second presidential administration. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Election summary: Trump wins, GOP takes over U.S. Senate, Alaska may get new governor

Begich and repeal of ranked choice voting narrowly lead; GOP may lose control of state House.

Nesbett Courthouse in downtown Anchorage on Oct. 7, 2024. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Most Read