The Florida Department of Health has set up a free, statewide hotline for residents to call with questions and concerns about the coronavirus.
When you make the call, a real person on the other end of the line first lays out the basics of the virus. It’s a mild to severe respiratory illness. Symptoms are a fever, cough and shortness of breath.
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When you inquire about testing, you’re told the process is three steps:
- Go to your primary care physician with concerns. They know your medical history best and can tell you whether testing might be needed.
- If they encourage testing, reach out to your county health department for assistance.
- Testing will be prioritized, based on recent travel to risk-level 2 and three countries, or exposure to people who have traveled recently to those countries.
The Call Center is 1 (866) 779-6121 and is available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to midnight. You can also email COVID-19@flhealth.gov your questions.
RELATED: Florida Now Has 9 Coronavirus Cases As State Gets More Testing Kits
The latest numbers from the FL-DOH website show nine positive cases of coronavirus in Florida. Two are Florida CDC-confirmed residents, one is a Florida resident presumptive positive, five are Florida cases repatriated (a repatriated case is when the United States Department of State officially coordinates the return of a Florida resident to the United States), and one is a non-Florida resident.
There have been 31 negative tests results, and there are currently 69 pending. There are 248 people currently being monitored in Florida, and 948 have been monitored to date.
