British Columbia

B.C. creates dedicated non-medical hotline for COVID-19 questions

The phone line will provide non-medical information about COVID-19 including latest information on social distancing, travel recommendations.

Phone line, 1-888-COVID19, will be staffed from 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week

Person holding cell phone over a keyboard.
The new hotline, which can be reached by calling 1-888-COVID19 or 1-888-268-4319, will be staffed from 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day. (Shutterstock)

British Columbia is creating a new information hotline solely dedicated to answering non-medical questions about COVID-19. 

Service providers at the new phone line will help answer questions about travel recommendations, social distancing, and what kinds of support, resources and assistance are available from the provincial and federal governments.

The new hotline was created to alleviate pressure on the province's existing health line, 811. This is still where British Columbians can call to reach health professionals and if they are experiencing symptoms related to COVID-19 or any other health-related issue.

The new hotline, which can be reached by calling 1-888-COVID19 or 1-888-268-4319, will be staffed from 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day with information available in more than 110 languages.

On Monday, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced three more people have died due to COVID-19, and 30 more cases have been identified in the province bringing the total number of confirmed cases up to 103. In total, four people have died in the province, and six have recovered.

If you have a COVID-19-related story we should pursue that affects British Columbians, please email us at impact@cbc.ca.