South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster has directed the state’s health department to begin publicly disclosing confirmed COVID-19 cases by ZIP code, raising concerns among some state officials about privacy violations.
In a tweet, McMaster said the order was effective Friday, noting that he also wanted the state Department of Health and Environmental Control to begin providing “the estimated number of residents who are likely infected and untested” in the same ZIP code.
South Carolina had reported more than 1,550 COVID-19 cases statewide as of Thursday, with at least one case reported in every county for the first time. Five additional deaths were reported, increasing the total to 31.
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State epidemiologist Linda Bell called ZIP code-level releases a “distraction” that could violate patient privacy, saying the release of too much information could lead to the accidental identification of a patient, as she said happened in the pandemic’s early days.
In an Associated Press interview, Bell said the best way to mollify the outbreak is for all South Carolinians to act as if anyone with whom they come into contact may be infected, rather than merely avoiding “hot spot” areas. She also added her agency would continue to disseminate information in a way she felt would best safeguard the public.
“What would people do differently if we give more granular information, when what is needed is the measures that we have recommended all along, for the community as a whole?” Bell said. “And that’s when we don’t release additional information -- when it is of no additional benefit to protect the public health.”
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South Carolina health officials have expressed hesitation at releasing that level of data on known infections, as opposed to the county-level data they say is an industry standard.
Acting public health director Nick Davidson told the AP the secure tool would be made available only to first responders, who have argued the information could help protect them, allowing them to check to see if a home to which they’re being called has a resident who has tested positive for the new coronavirus.
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