I know there was some confusion around Google launching a COVID-19 website, thanks in part to…oh who cares – the website is now live. Yes, the coronavirus website that Google eventually committed to launching, only to see it delayed slightly, is here.
So we are clear, this isn’t the website so many in media have told you was coming, the one where you can get info on screening and setting up a test. This was never going to be that. That site is a site from a Google company called Verily that started Project Baseline, a California-only project aimed at helping with that whole screening and testing thing. The website we’re talking about right now is just an informational site and is the only thing Google ever committed to as a nationwide project.
What do you get with this new Google COVID-19 website? Again, just information.
If you head over to www.google.com/covid19, you’ll find information on coronavirus symptoms, prevention, treatments, safety & prevention tips, and how you can support relief efforts. There are links to authorities like the WHO and CDC. There’s even a section on keeping yourself well while at home, with info on working from home, cooking, working out, and more.
That’s not all Google has launched, though. The mobile search experience for “coronavirus” now presents you with tabs of information at the ready. They are also adding notes to searches for hospitals or for those seeking medical care about the CDC’s recommendation for doing such. Basically, Google is trying to stop our healthcare system from getting overwhelmed by people heading into emergency rooms too early.
If you need information, Google is now doing its best to provide it to you in one place.