a catastrophic surge in infections has made it difficult or impossible to keep up with the calls considered critical to controlling outbreaks.Health officials say do-it-yourself tracing is not ideal, but as infections and hospitalizations soar, it's likely the most effective way to reach people who may be at risk.
Over 16.5 million people in the U.S. have been infected and more than 300,000 have died, and officials fear transmission will only get worse as people gather for the holidays.Some health departments aren't being informed of infections for several days, making it impossible to call at least 75% of a person's contacts within 24 hours of a positive test, which experts say is necessary to control outbreaks.