MOUNT JULIET, TN (WSMV) – Brock Ballou expected the first call.
After all, his co-worker had tested positive for COVID-19, so he expected a call from a contact tracer.
He didn’t anticipate, however, what the tracer would tell him.
“She specifically said – I’m looking at it right here – you tested positive – this is a follow up call to see how your symptoms are,” Ballou said.
There was just one major problem – because he hadn’t experienced any symptoms, Ballou hadn’t been tested yet.
“Is it possible you misheard her?” asked News4 Investigates.
“I’m 100 percent sure that’s what she said, she was looking right at it; she told me I’m in the system – looking right at it that you’re showing positive,” Ballou said.
Then – two more days with calls – all from tracers asking about his symptoms.
“(The contact tracer) said I’m still seeing that you’re positive. Courtesy call – checking your symptoms,” Ballou said.
Ballou shared with News4 Investigates the three phones numbers that contacted him and all of them come from workers with the state health department.
Ballou said he’s concerned that if he’s incorrectly identified as positive in the state’s system, how accurate are the numbers that are released daily?
“I said I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s wrong. I’m just another number when I’m not,” Ballou said.
A spokeswoman for the state department of health confirmed they are investigating and wrote, “I can also tell you there is no concern with our count of cases in regard to our reporting of those who test positive. Those entries are based on lab results, not on information provided from the monitoring team.”
Ballou said he’d been told by the state health department that a third party contractor made the calls to him and they’re now investigating to find out what happened.
News4 Investigates will follow up and report back on what they determine.
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