A Rapid Public Health Response to a Pandemic: Results of the Massachusetts COVID-19 Community Tracing Collaborative

The first COVID-19 case in Massachusetts was identified in January 2020, marking the start of an unprecedented pandemic that resulted in more than 20,000 deaths statewide. In response, Massachusetts rapidly developed and launched the Community Tracing Collaborative (CTC), the nation's first large-scale statewide contact tracing support system.

Beginning in April 2020, the CTC, an entirely virtual operation, recruited and trained more than 4000 lay staff to conduct outreach to COVID-19 cases and contacts. CTC services included case investigation and contact tracing; referral for social supports such as food and other resources; outbreak investigation and response; and referrals for testing and treatment.

We conducted a cohort analysis of COVID-19 cases and close contacts referred to the CTC, as well as contacts identified by CTC staff during tracing activities, between May 1, 2020, and October 31, 2021. We calculated the proportions of cases and contacts with successful initial interviews and, among those, successful completion of isolation or quarantine.

During the study period, the CTC supported 551,797 cases and 304,928 contacts. Among individuals served, 8.6% identified as Black, 22.0% as Hispanic, 50.8% as female, and 11.6% as non-English speaking. Overall, 79.3% had a successful initial interview outcome, and among these, 72.6% successfully completed isolation or quarantine.

The CTC demonstrated that a large-scale, integrated case investigation and contact tracing program with embedded supportive services can be rapidly deployed and sustained, even in an unprecedented public health emergency.