States get tracing apps to talk to each other as virus rises

RALEIGH, N.C (AP) — Virginia’s public health department says the state’s contact tracing app now interacts with several nearby states. This means users can rely on the state’s COVIDWISE app to inform them if they have come into contact with someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus in nearby states like North Carolina, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland. Nearly all states using the exposure notification technology can now inform users in other states if they’ve been exposed to the virus. Virginia was the first state in the country to adopt the technology. It’s now the last to join the Association of Public Health Laboratories’ National Key Server. California, Hawaii and Oregon are also piloting cross-state notifications.