So, COVID-19 is so dangerous we're locking down again...

It's the same other places too...can't be asked It's not just NYC

Our state is absolutely asking as there was a press release that an individual attending a protest had tested positive so please go and get tested.

I can see both sides of this. On one hand, are they asking everyone where they could have been exposed? Linking protests to increases in the virus is another way that protestors can be looked down on and blamed for the situation (without other groups taking responsibility for their role in increasing cases).

On the other hand, it could be helpful to let people know what types of activities have led to increases in cases so that those activities (or similar) can be avoided.

The issue is contact tracer shortage. There aren't enough bodies to meaningfully contact trace a rally or protest. Mass media is only option for people to learn and hopefully protect themselves.

I disagree with them not asking. It gives the naysayers another weapon in their arsenal and we need to know where it is spreading from.

It matters. It's an important factor in the pandemic that we need to investigate fully then be completely honest about.

I see SO many people using the protests as fuel to their argument that outdoor crowd events should be allowed. "If thousands of people can protest together, we can have concerts, parades, sporting events, festivals, etc...". Also SO many posts blaming the protests on the spikes in positive test numbers.

It's a very charged topic. If it turns out that the protests didn't contribute significantly to the rise in positive cases, that needs to be taken into consideration when deciding what events and activities are safer and should be allowed in various communities. But if it turns out that the protests did contribute significantly to it, that affects things such as freedom to assemble and protest and we have to figure out how to manage the risks while preserving as much freedom as possible.

But either way, it's important to learn what, if any, affect these events had.

I posted a link here a few days ago. In my state, according to the article, they ARE being asked, and there were something like 5 cases linked to the protests.

What was the number one rule for differential diagnosis on House? People lie. In this case, if people know that question will be asked, many will choose to not get tested at all. Which is a worse outcome than not knowing where they got it, because it leads to community spread. They do ask "where have you been."

www.thecity.nyc/coronavirus/2020/6/14/21290963/nyc-covid-19-trackers-skipping-floyd-protest-questions-even-amid-fears-of-new-wave

"Dr. S. Patrick Kachur, a professor at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and a former official at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said contact trackers face a balancing act: trying to obtain useful information about an infected person’s contacts without alienating them with overly intrusive questions.

Asking someone if they’d been at a protest could wind up discouraging them from being candid in their answers, he noted.

“I think the logic has to do with the fact that contact tracing requires a strong level of trust between the interviewer and the person they’re talking to,” he said. “It’s really important to have a good rapport and treat people with ease. It’s important to not ask questions that will impede your ability to do the best job you can.”
"

The question is what would you rather know more: A. Who HAS the virus, and stop transmission chains that will develop in the future. B. Where they might have gotten it, so they can find who ALSO might have the virus.

The Group B people can be found, by those people heading the advice of the governors and mayors, that if you protest, you should get tested. Group B can become Group A through a general warning. If Group A doesn't show up, we don't know who is in Group C. Who gets it next.

I don't know what the reasons are for them not asking in some places. Maybe others can chime in on that. But I'm still not understanding the hysteria? We all know that the protests had risk, right? If they come out and say that a lot of people got the virus from protests, the naysayers will just say, "See! I am fine. I didn't go to a protest" and they will continue to do what they want. So, while it would be helpful to know If people got it at the protests (or possibly did), I don't think it would help us to get people on board with thinking this is serious. I also don't see how not asking that questions leads you to say that must mean that the virus really isn't that dangerous.

I was wondering the same thing.

Or does it just depend on which pea uses the terminology?