More States Launch COVID-19 App Using Apple, Google Framework

September 22, 2020 - Governor Gavin Newsom recently announced that Washington and Oregon will join California in piloting a project to test promising exposure notification technology pioneered by Google and Apple. 

An app developed by the technology giants confidentially notifies individuals who may have been exposed to someone who tested positive for the virus but does not collect personal location data from any device. Users must physically opt-in to the technology.

“Exposure notification technology has tremendous potential to slow the spread of COVID-19 within our communities and our region,” Governor Newsom said in the announcement. 

“With the participation of the Western States Pact in this important endeavor, our public health officials and academic and technology partners can share experiences and lessons as they develop the Exposure Notification Express application. I thank my fellow governors for so many acts of collaboration and coordination during this crisis, and I look forward to our continued partnership in the fight against COVID-19.”

Exposure notification is vital to helping individuals take the steps they need to stay healthy. The technology can also help to slow the spread of transmission. 

California, Washington, and Oregon will now join Colorado and Nevada, which are also members of the Western States Pact. The pilot will also include universities across the country. 

“In the absence of a strong national strategy to fight COVID-19, coordinated efforts between states on reining in this pandemic are critical. Washingtonians are grateful to have partners like Oregon and California in this fight,” said Washington Governor Jay Inslee.

“This innovative solution will help us slow the spread of this deadly virus. We should use this tech to our advantage, and the more states and people that participate, the more we can detect and prevent potential hot spots and defeat the virus,” added Colorado Governor Jared Polis. 

Back in April, Apple and Google partnered to create app-building software for public health agencies working to contain the spread of the virus.

As part of the initiative, the companies enabled a broader Bluetooth-based contact-placing platform, which is more advanced than an API. This allowed for a broader range of individuals to participate.

Four months later, Nevada and Virginia launched individual COVID-19 tracing apps leveraging the Apple-Google COVID-19 exposure software build into smartphones.

Virginia was the first state in the US to use the Apple-Google COVID-19 exposure and Bluetooth technology to create an app, known as Covidwise.

Covidwise determines how close and how long an individual may have been exposed to the virus without receiving personal information from the contact or user. 

If one of the users tests positive for COVID-19, the system notifies the individual through a six-digit pin provided by the Virginia Department of Health.

The system then notifies other phones with the app if they have been exposed to the virus through the Apple-Google system, which unscrambles keys based on when the phones were in close range with each other.

Covidwise also urges the individual to get tested or quarantine for 14 days.

At the end of August, Nevada also used the Google=Apple framework to develop a free contact tracing phone app called “COVID Trace.” The app was also designed to notify users of possible exposure. 

COVID Trace periodically checks for nearby phones associated with positive COVID-19 cases. If there is a match, the app will notify the user with HHS instructions on the next steps. 

Similar to other COVID-19 apps, COVID Trace is entirely opt-in, which means that users have to download the app to use its functions. Additionally, those who test positive for coronavirus have to take steps in the app to notify other individuals they may have come in contact with of a possible exposure.