Update:  

Contact tracing in Nevada has helped identify more than 12,000 cases of COVID-19. Officials say the new app, COVID Trace, may help even more people know if they've been exposed to the virus.

"It helps fill in the gaps that are left by traditional contact tracing. What I really like about this app, is that it's an opt-in service and its completely voluntary for Nevadans and visitors users to use," said Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak.

Governor Sisolak gave a glowing review of the new contact tracing app, COVID Trace. The COVID Trace app uses anonymous bluetooth communication between phones to track if a person has been in the vicinity of someone with Coronavirus or if someone they've been around is later diagnosed with it. COVID Trace however, doesn't keep track of a phone owner's identity or contacts.

The public has their own views of the new app. "For me I have extreme anxiety about COVID, so i need to know for sure if I've been exposed," said local resident Dennie Mccue. "I just think life's too short. So I'd rather just live it. I'm not going to worry over COVID," said local resident Wendy Wenger. "It's just new and inventive," said local resident Anthony Harris.

It also doesn't keep track of the location where the person was exposed. "Someone will give you 5, 10, 20 places they visited and might have contracted the disease. But they can't specify the one place that it certainly is. But we have to be sure that businesses are not harmed by half information," said Governor Sisolak.

Developers and members of the response team say the more people who use the app, the more receptive it is, and the more it can help. "If you have 40% of the population using it, you have a significant impact on the reduction of the spread," said COVID Trace app developer Dudley Carr.

The COVID Trace app is free, and it's paid for by private donors. not the state.

As Coronavirus cases continue to rise, doctors maintain the importance of contact tracing those who have been exposed in hopes of slowing the spread. Now there's an app for that, and its free.

On Monday, an app named COVID Trace was released in our area. Health and Human Services hopes it will make a difference in the fight against the Coronavirus.

"It is important that every single person in Nevada is able to use it," said the one of the app's developers Dudley Carr.

COVID Trace takes COVID-19 contact tracing, the tracking of everyone who has been in contact with an infected person, to a cellular level. Cellular, as in using a cell phone's bluetooth to do the tracking.

"Phones that are within 6 feet of one another, or some proximity, they are exchanging private tokens," said Dudley. All phones emit a traceable signal. So this isn't an invasion of privacy. The app can't see your contacts or personal information or track your location. If the phone user has been around someone who was potentially exposed, that's another matter.

"We're highlighting when an exposure occurred, and how long it has happened. If you were in super close contact with somebody like within feet of somebody for 5 minutes, but later in the day you were around someone who was exposed but like 10 minutes, it weights those experiences. Does an accumulation of those," said Dudley.

For the person who was exposed, their privacy is protected as well. When they get diagnosed, notifying someone through the app is their choice to make, it's not required.

The medical provider who gave them the diagnosis, gives them a personalized code. "Rational for doing that is we want to make sure the information submitted is from cases that have actually tested positive," said Dudley.

The app can also find them a place to get tested, updated stats, and tips on avoiding the virus. It is available for iPhones and Android phones. 

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