Have questions about the coronavirus? NC now has a helpline available 24/7.

Have any questions about the coronavirus? North Carolina now has coronavirus helpline that can be reached 24 hours seven days a week.

The number is 866-462-3821.

Nurses and pharmacists on the helpline will answer questions about symptoms, risk factors, how coronavirus spreads and possible precautions, according to a release from N.C. Poison Control.

Coronavirus is part of a family of viruses common in animals. They rarely get transmitted to humans.

It causes respiratory illness with symptoms that include fever, cough and shortness of breath. They may appear in two to 14 days. The seriousness of the illness varies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The coronavirus respiratory illness was first detected in Wuhan, China. Cases now have been confirmed around the world, including 11 cases in the United States, CNN reported.

Six cases have been confirmed in California. Others have been confirmed in Arizona, Washington, Illinois and Massachusetts, according to CNN.

None have been reported in North Carolina, and health officials have said the possibility of cases here are low.

Last week, state health officials announced a change in how they will report cases to protect patients’ privacy, The News & Observer reported. The state won’t announce when someone is being tested.

Instead, any positive test results will be reported on the state’s website at epi.dph.ncdhhs.gov/cd/diseases/2019nCoV.html.

The news came after the state reported it was testing a person who had arrived at Raleigh-Durham International Airport after visiting Wuhan on their travels. The test results were negative.

This story was originally published February 3, 2020 at 4:54 PM.