New coronavirus: Bulgaria’s Health Ministry opens hotline
Bulgaria’s Ministry of Health opened on February 11 an information hotline for the public and organisations to get information about the 2019-nCoV coronavirus epidemic.
Information from an epidemiologist is available at the telephone number 02 807 87 57, Monday to Friday, during working hours (8.30am to 5pm), the Health Ministry said.
“The reason for opening the telephone line is the frequent inquiries of citizens and organizations about the new coronavirus: symptoms, diagnosis, prevention, handling of goods arriving from China, trips from and to countries where there are registered cases of coronavirus 2019-nCoV.”
While a few people arriving from China and other countries in Bulgaria have shown some symptoms of possible illness, as of February 11 none has tested positive for new coronavirus. The government has announced a number of measures against the illness, including thermal testing at the airports in Sofia, Varna and Bourgas.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said in an update for the worldwide situation, as at 9am Eastern European Time on February 11, that there had been 43 118 lab-confirmed cases of new coronavirus and 1018 deaths. There were 41 cases in the EU/EEA area or the UK, the ECDC said.
The ECDC’s website has, in English, factsheets and advice for health care staff and travellers about new coronavirus.
