Google really is developing a nationwide site dedicate to coronavirus
UPDATE:
Google announced it “is partnering with the U.S. government in developing a nationwide website.” Google’s latest announcement says the site is in addition to what Verily is doing, which is much more limited, in that only people in the San Francisco Bay area would be able to do risk assessments and get scheduled for testing.
HOWEVER:
The site is not what President Trump described. It is not a screening site which will direct people to nearby testing if appropriate. It is just a general info site. Trump conflated the Verily site (which is intended to do what he claims, but was originally only intended for health care workers in the SF area) and the upcoming Google site (which is nationwide, but is just general info and helpful tips).
Trump:
“I want to thank Google. Google is helping to develop a website, it’s going to be very quickly done, unlike websites of the past, to determine whether a test is warranted and to facilitate testing at a nearby convenient location.”
“We’re partnering with the U.S. government in developing a website dedicated to COVID-19 education, prevention, and local resources nationwide. This includes best practices on prevention, links to authoritative information from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and helpful tips and tools from Google for individuals, teachers and businesses. We’ll be rolling out an initial version of the website late Monday, March 16, and we’ll continue to enhance and update it with more resources on an ongoing basis.”
Having noted that, I’ll add that the imaginary thing Trump described is a very good idea and somebody SHOULD develop it – respond to a questionaire, and it tells you the next step to take in your zip code. Once the groundwork is laid, it could be used for future diseases as well.
PREVIOUS:
“Google’s not making a nationwide coronavirus testing website. And the company had no idea the president would say it was.”
As Google’s sister company, Verily, understood it, the site was to be designed primarily for health care workers, not the general public, and would work at first only in the San Francisco area.
“People will be looking for a site that tells them where to get tested; unless they live in a handful of zip codes, it will be useless to them for the foreseeable future.”