As promised, Google has rolled out its dedicated COVID-19 website, featuring information on the disease, regularly updated stats and links out to resources you may need as the situation develops.
The site provides basic tips on how to self-diagnose, how to prevent catching it and how to prevent spreading it. The site also notes that, "There is no specific medicine to prevent or treat coronavirus disease (COVID-19). People may need supportive care to help them breathe."
There are also links to the World Health Organization's site for further information, and an updated list of known global infections, cases per million people, recoveries and deaths.
[Read more: Coronavirus survives on surfaces for days, but what does that really mean?]
As far as information on how and where to get tested locally, there's not much, just a series of links out to state authorities' websites for US residents. But there are a few informative videos, a few FAQ-style answers to commonly-googled enquiries, and other resources for isolators, including tips on working from home, working out at home, cooking, meditation and other things targeted at individuals, educators and businesses.
Check out the site at google.com/covid19
Source: Google
sometimes what really kills the patient is NOT really the disease (organism) itself,
but overreaction of the body to it!
IMHO, current global COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic really seems to be causing overreaction
& causing massive damage to whole world economy & bigger & bigger damage!
IMHO, it seems a global social positive feedback effect is happening (which is the root cause):
Mass media (which is always happy to try to create/push mass fear & alarming/sensational news)
& social media (which is full of people who want their content read/watched/shared as much as possible)
are keep amplifying the effect of each other, on the general public!
Which in turn, keep pushing all governments to take more & more drastic (mandatory) measures, against the spread of the disease!
& the news of each new (government) drastic measure, in turn, feeds more & more into mass media & social media to amplify excessive fear, even further!
But then, what would/should be a reasonable (global) response to such a pandemic?
IMHO, closing any businesses/shops (& even schools) & shutting down public transportation is excessive overreaction!
We need to make sure whole world economy continues to run OK & livelihoods of any group of people are not effected badly!
But, IMHO, practical measures, like social distancing (like no handshaking & working from home)
& frequent washing/disinfecting (of hands & commonly used areas/objects/surfaces)
& wearing masks at any crowded places, etc, could/should be (strongly) recommended (but still NOT as mandatory)!
Agreed with FB36, we are not reacting properly to minimize total harm.
There is no cure, vaccine or pre-existing immunity. It's far from the most deadly disease in the world, but compared to other deadly diseases it's far more easily spread.
If we wait until a billion people are infected simultaneously, there won't be enough doctors, nurses or ventilators and millions of people will go (essentially) untreated. The mortality rate won't be 2% then. It could kill a hundred million. And we only have one chance to slow the exponential growth. There is no wait-and-see option.
So, as much as I agree that the media & social media are sensationalist and I agree that the economic (and other) impacts of the counter-measures are in danger of being overlooked, they remain the lesser evil.
It is a situation that nobody currently alive in the world has seen before. Unless you take drastic action now in the States, the situation in Italy will look like a warm-up match!!!!!