AQW 5780/17-22 Written question to the Minister of Health

To ask the Minister of Health when the contact tracing data published by the Public Health Agency will contain more localised information, for example by council area or postcode.

Asked by Paula Bradshaw MLA on 21 July 2020

  • Answered
  • Written
  • After due date
Tabled
21 July 2020
Answer due by
5 August 2020
Answered
20 August 202030 days after tabling
Department
Department of Health
Priority question
No

Answer

The latest information on the number of positive tests reports to the Contact Tracing Service (CTS), is published weekly on the Public Health Agency (PHA) website - https://www.publichealth.hscni.net/covid-19-coronavirus/testing-and-tracing-covid-19/contact-tracing-service-management-information.

PHA does not comment on individual cases of COVID-19 or provide the detail of every incident that emerges, as this could lead to people being identified, create stigma, and focus attention on individuals, families or groups, and could therefore deter others with symptoms from coming forward to be tested and from complying with advice relating to self-isolation.

PHA plans to publish regular updates on regional cluster activity, reporting on larger clusters (greater than 5) by Local Authority area on a weekly basis, as outlined in their recent press release - https://www.publichealth.hscni.net/news/pha-cluster-assessment-shows-cases-both-workplace-and-community-settings.

Official sources