COVID-19 Tracking in Barbados

Due to a rise in COVID-19, the Minister of Health and Wellness - Lt. Colonel Jeffrey Bostic has introduced a requirement for citizens and tourists to wear tracking bracelets for those subjected to quarantine. These bracelets are useful for contact tracing, a method used to alert people about a potential exposure to the coronavirus. According to the latest protocols, everyone who arrives with a valid negative COVID-19 test result from countries deemed high or medium risk must take a second test in Barbados within four to five days after the first test. This new bracelet protocol will begin next Wednesday but tracking bracelets have already been handed out to many visitors already.

According to the Minister, “The bracelets that we are speaking about are tracking bracelets. They have a mechanism, they are tamper-proof, and they are also water-resistant. And as soon as anyone tries to do anything, an alarm goes off and the command and control centre will receive those alerts and we would then be able to respond. If a person goes out of the area that they are supposed to be in quarantine, again the alarm goes off and we will be able to respond and respond properly”.

Enforcing mask and quarantine rules are very difficult using previous methods and there is also a new variant of the coronavirus which is much more efficient at spreading. Over the past few months, no daily change of cases in Barbados has exceeded 50 until January 3rd of the new year where 161 new cases were registered. The following day 50 cases were registered, which was still many times higher than the average daily change. This new method of tracking potential spreaders is a way to create a sense of security for the population because the influx of tourism has created a rather chaotic situation.