Letter from Community COVID Coalition Regarding Contact Tracing Awareness Campaign

September 23, 2020

Dear Governor:

Since January 2020, the CDC Foundation has been assisting public health entities, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state and local health departments, in taking rapid and evidence-based public health measures to stop the spread of COVID-19. In June, the CDC Foundation launched a new partnership with the National Governors Association (NGA) and the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) to support COVID-19 contact tracing efforts. With initial funding from Facebook, the Community COVID Coalition, focuses on improving the public’s compliance with contact tracing through evidence-based social media campaigns. We are writing to introduce you to the initiative and gauge your interest in participating, which will be at no cost to your state.

With the help of premiere experts in public health communications, the Coalition developed culturally relevant social media assets to reach target audiences and support state and local contact tracing programs. The Coalition is ready to make these resources available to all states, which will be accompanied by the added value of donated advertising space on Facebook’s platforms. In addition to donated ad space, each participating state will receive digital marketing assistance from Facebook marketing partner, SocialCode. Each participating state will be paired with a team of experts who will plan, manage, execute and optimize contact tracing communications campaigns to ensure they are reaching target audiences. The utilization of this partnership and service holds promise to increase the effectiveness of contact tracing within your state, with the ultimate goal of stopping the spread of COVID-19.

The resources will be educational and include information on how contract tracing helps stop the spread of COVID-19, why individuals should participate in contact tracing efforts, and the basics of what individuals should expect if they are contacted. These resources have been focus-group tested and are designed to address possible barriers to people responding to contact tracers when they call. Our goal is to help states communicate the importance of contact tracing while building public trust, acceptance and understanding of these important programs.

The Coalition will hold an informational webinar on Wednesday, September 30 from 3:00 to 4:00 PM ET. During the webinar, participants will learn more about the Coalition, the social media assets, and how states can participate.   Register Here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJItdOytrjspEtUqjPtTsucDhXPLmDDvltbx

To learn more about the Coalition, download the research report, view a sample of the social media assets and learn more about accessing the ad credits go to www.COVIDCoalition.org.

We are very excited to offer this innovative way to support governors and public health leaders as they strive to stop the spread of COVID-19 and support economic recovery.

Please contact COVIDCoalition@CDCFoundation.org to learn more or to initiate your state’s participation.

Best regards,

Timothy Blute, Director
NGA Center for Best Practices

Michael Fraser, Chief Executive Officer
ASTHO

Judy Monroe, MD, President and CEO
CDC Foundation

Cc:     State Health Officials
Governors’ Communication Directors
Governors’ Health Policy Advisors
Governors’ Washington Representatives
State Health Agency Public Information Officials