the approach. Forward tracing is the process of looking for contacts after infection, so as to prevent further disease spread. It is the more conventional way to investigate cases and inform close contacts to either quarantine or isolate. For epidemics with high heterogeneity in infectiousness, adopting a hybrid strategy of forward contact tracing combined with contact tracing backwards is often used. Backward contact tracing is beneficial for identifying clusters of spreader events, while forward tracing can be used mitigate future transmission. The effectiveness of both approaches is limited by the resources dedicated to contact tracing. Journalist and author Laurie Garrett pointed out in late October 2020, however, that the amount of the virus in the U.S. is now so large that no health departments has the resources to contact and trace. Additionally, officials overlooked the effect of mistrust in the government and conspiracy theories regarding the virus on thwarting contact tracing efforts in the U.S. COVID-19 Contact tracing requires tremendous resources and work hours to effectively contain an infection. The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented period where contact tracing and public health efforts were put to the test. Creative strategies were used to sustain public health efforts. Non-health personnel and volunteers were used to meet the shortage of contact tracers. Existing infrastructure such as call centers and national helpline services were used for operations. Individuals who were the most sick and medically vulnerable were prioritized as contacts over healthier people. The advent of technology and digital tracing tools were implemented at a global scale without much vetting and testing. Various countries had different adaptations and outcomes with contact tracing. China used pre-existing WeChat and Alipay platforms to track person health status and travel patterns. Singapore, South Korea, and Vietnam had success limiting the initial spread of the virus. With contact tracing, once a person was identified to be exposed, they were immediately isolated. In some instances the government provided housing for isolation to limit movements. In Turkey, the government launched a public forum that highlighted risk zones in various regions of the country. Residents can self-report their health status and track areas with reported high rates of transmission. In the United States, contact tracing efforts varied by the respective health department in a particular state. Overall, effectiveness of contact tracing data in the country was determined by the caseload assigned to contact tracers. Technology The age of digital contact tracing