Restaurant customer lists needed to trace contacts, but will remain private, Inslee says

Gov. Jay Inslee on Tuesday explained why the state is requiring people to give their name and contact information when dine-in restaurant service resumes at half-capacity.

“If you have somebody who becomes sick and they were sitting right next to a person at a restaurant, to be able to identify that person could be very valuable for their health to try to save their life,” Inslee said at a press conference.

Asked if customers would be required to show photo identification to prove their identity and face sanctions if they refused, Inslee said the governor’s office is working on the details with the trade group representing restaurant owners.

“We want to be able to open restaurants. People are anxious for that and we want to do some common-sense things so that if someone does have an infection at a restaurant, we will be able to save other patrons’ lives,” he said. “We ought to be able to do both.

“This is something that we have to make sure that we build protocols around privacy so that any of this information can only be used for this purpose, can be expunged after 14 days so that this is only a minor inconvenience. No one is looking to make this a federal crime. We’re trying to save some lives here,” Inslee added.

The requirement for restaurants to keep a daily log with the name and contact information of their customers is part of the second phase of reopening businesses that were deemed “non-essential” when the governor issued his stay-at-home order in March to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Phase 2 is scheduled to begin June 1 throughout the state, but that’s a “hopeful date,” Inslee said.

“The virus will determine whether we can start on June 1. And our ability to be successful in our social distancing and our contract tracing will determine whether we can take that next step on June 1st,” he said.

Anthony Anton, president and chief executive officer of the Washington Hospitality Association, said customer logs are a requirement for each industry that has reopened in Phase 1, and “is our understanding it will be the requirement for all Phase 2 businesses.”

“Now that the restaurant industry is entrusted to reopen, we’re going to deliver on the requirements and go above and beyond for our customers to ensure great, local experiences that keep our guests and employees safe. We look forward to serving our neighbors as soon as possible,” Anton said in a written statement.

The governor also announced a significant expansion in Washington’s contact tracing system.

By the end of this week, Washington will have 1,371 contact tracers trained and ready to work — 630 from the state and local health departments, 390 from the state Department of Licensing and 351 from the National Guard.

On April 15, Inslee said rapid testing, isolation and contact tracing are some of the efforts needed to be implemented before social distancing measures can be relaxed.

He repeated that message Tuesday.

“If we do not succeed in this, what you might think of as the second stage of our efforts, this virus could jump right back out and bite us,” he said.

Contact tracing involves interviewing people with positive COVID-19 tests to identify who they’ve been in contact with, getting those people tested and then making sure they isolate themselves and their families.

Those who are interviewed who have had contact with a person who tested positive for COVID-19 will not be told who that person is, Inslee said.

Data collected by contact tracers will be accessible only to health care professionals and “will not be shared,” he said.

Questions will cover symptoms, recent exposure, and demographic information including age, gender and ethnicity, but they will not include immigration status, Social Security numbers, financial information or marital status, Inslee said.

“We’re only contacting people who have already agreed to be contacted and an individual can end the phone call at any time,” said Steve Hobbs, a Lieutenant Colonel in the National Guard who also is a state senator.

This story was originally published May 12, 2020 at 12:00 AM.