Should Cops Get Coronavirus Patient Names? Health Dept. Says No

MCHENRY COUNTY, IL — Local health officials are asking a judge to reconsider and dissolve a temporary restraining order that gives some local police agencies access to the names and addresses of new coronavirus patients in McHenry County.

A court hearing on the motion is scheduled for May 18, Lindsey Salvatelli, community information coordinator for the McHenry County Department of Health, wrote in an email response to Patch.

“The health department has been and continues to stay in compliance with the TRO [temporary restraining order] mandate,” she said.

But local health officials say the information provided through the order will not protect first responders. And the temporary restraining order, which was approved April 10, “needlessly erodes the public’s privacy rights” while going against HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) and Illinois Department of Public Health guidelines, those officials say.

In particular, health officials say, police officers may come in contact with coronavirus patients who are not yet showing symptoms and be exposed to the disease before they’d have any reason to be tested, according to a statement from the health department. And that providing the names of coronavirus patients could give them a “false sense of security when contacting a person who is asymptomatic.”

Instead, they should be focused on wearing personal protective gear when contacting anyone, which is the guidance provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, health officials say.

But local officials say there is a shortage of PPE, and the masks are not securely fixed in place on an officer’s face and can be easily detached during physical encounters, pursuits and other unforeseen circumstances. In addition, social distancing is not always possible for police officers working to keep the public safe, according to a joint statement from the agencies filing the order.

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McHenry County Sheriff Bill Prim, McHenry Police Chief John Birk, Algonquin Police Chief John Bucci, Lake in the Hills Police Chief David Brey and Woodstock Police Chief John Lieb filed the joint legal action April 7. The move came after the health department agreed to provide names on March 31 but then rescinded that offer, according to a joint statement from the law enforcement agencies.

Knowing the names of coronavirus patients will allow officers to take additional precautions and determine whether to use limited PPE, those officials said. It also may be considered when arresting an infected person who then would be placed behind bars and potentially infect other inmates and correctional officers, they said.

Under the court order, the health department must provide the names of COVID-19 patients in McHenry County to law enforcement within 24 hours of being notified of the patient’s status. The names of the patients would then be purged from police records seven days after health officials deem the person “no longer contagious.” Those involved in the suit requested the use of the premise alert system and the computer automated dispatch or RMS System with the McHenry County Emergency Telephone System Board (ETSB) “as a way to compartmentalize and secure this sensitive information so it is not accessible to law enforcement except on an individual call basis and will be expunged in a timely manner when exposure risk goes away,” according to a joint statement from local law enforcement officials.

“Law enforcement would only receive a warning notification if they were on a call with a resident who tested positive,” according to the statement. “In addition, law enforcement has also agreed to provide additional in-house training to all officers on the sensitivity and confidentiality requirements of the information so any and all information provided stay confidential.”