The following is an unedited press release.
CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon in partnership with developer ProudCrowd has made available a free mobile app to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. The app, Care19 Diary, is available now for mobile phones and already is in use in North Dakota and South Dakota.
Once the app is downloaded, users are assigned a random ID number and the app will create a diary of where an individual has visited throughout the day. The ID number of each individual contains no personal information besides location data. Individuals are then encouraged to review the diary to ensure the tracking of locations is correct, adding visits that may have been missed, or deleting others that may have been suggested in error. The app will only suggest locations of places a person visits for 10 minutes or more. A user can clear their history at any point as well.
If you test positive for COVID-19 in the future, you can use the phone diary to help contact tracers protect others that may have been in contact with you. Another option for a user is to consent to share the information about locations you’ve visited with the WDH to support the critical contact tracing process, but your privacy is protected.
“In implementing this app Wyoming joins North and South Dakota as a leader in the response to COVID-19,” Governor Gordon said. “Governors Noem and Burgum have already implemented this entirely voluntary program. Here in Wyoming, the more citizens who choose to voluntarily participate, the more effective our fight against COVID-19 will be. The information this app gathers can save lives. Embracing this technology is one more way we can show that we’re all in this together.”
WDH and county health officials have worked tirelessly to track COVID-19 cases in the state and limit the virus’ spread through contact tracing efforts. The Care19 Diary app will help enhance the extensive contact tracing already occurring in the state.
“We are extremely excited that our work for North Dakota and South Dakota is now being used to also help the people of Wyoming” said ProwdCrowd CEO Tim Brookins. “Big thanks to Governor Gordon and his team for their partnership. We built these products with privacy as our primary design point – wide-scale adoption is the ultimate goal!”
Care19 Diary is now available in the Apple App store and the Android Play Store. An additional app, Care 19 Alert is expected to be available later this month. Care 19 Alert utilizes Bluetooth technology to keep track of anonymous keys transmitted by nearby phones. When an individual is identified as being Covid-19 positive they can consent to notifying others who have been near them who also voluntarily download the app so they can take the appropriate actions.
For more information about the Care19 apps, go to covid19.wyo.gov