Israel offers incoming travelers alternative to quarantine hotel: tracking bracelet

Supercom

01/03/2021 19:23

JERUSALEM, March 1 (Reuters) - Israelis returning home from
abroad have a new option that will exempt them from being sent
to a quarantine hotel: They can wear a bracelet monitor that
will notify authorities should they violate a mandatory
isolation period.
    The pilot program began on Monday with 100 tracking systems
available at Ben Gurion Airport, where traffic has dropped
dramatically due to restrictions meant to reduce the risk of
COVID-19 variants entering the country.
    Incoming passengers have been forced to stay at hotels, paid
for by the government, for up to two weeks to make sure they are
virus-free before they can move around freely.
    Should someone choose the new system -- which includes an
electronic bracelet, a smartphone and a wall-mounted tracker --
they can self-isolate at home.
    "We said we want it," said 44-year-old Alejandro Quil, who
wore the slim, lightweight and waterproof bracelet on his wrist.
"They gave us the service, it's great for us so we won't have to
go to a hotel, so we will can do the quarantine at home as it
should be."
    The system alerts the authorities if someone removes the
bracelet or ventures too far from the home monitor.
    "There is potential for the pilot to quickly expand into a
project consisting of thousands of units for more wide scale use
to assist in quarantine compliance in Israel," said SuperCom
 SPCB.O , the company behind the technology.

 (Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
 ((ari.rabinovitch@thomsonreuters.com;  +972-2-632-2202; Reuters
Messaging: ari.rabinovitch@thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))