Only 35 percent of NYC's coronavirus cases gave info about close contacts in tracing program's initial stage

New York skyline.
(Image credit: JOHANNES EISELE/AFP via Getty Images)

New York City's new coronavirus contact tracing program has gotten off to a rough start, The New York Times reports, though experts remain optimistic it will improve over time.

The ambitious program, which employs 3,000 contact tracers, has yet to yield satisfying results as New York heads toward a new phase of reopening that includes outdoor dining, in-store shopping, and the resumption of office work. All told, the nation's largest city has come a long way since it was battered by the virus in the early days of the pandemic, but fresh challenges likely await, which is where the contact tracers come in.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.