Social Media Platform Facebook is leveraging the COVID19 Announcement in India, which is a helping tool for the health departments of State and Union Territories to share the crucial COVID19 related updates with their communities.

It will support the public health authorities to keep the people aware and safe during the novel coronavirus in India.

India is the second country after the US launch this feature and partnered with Facebook with 33 states and Union Territories to roll out the feature.

The COVID19 Announcement feature will give the health departments the ability to get out timely, with efficient COVID19 and Vaccine information to people in their local communities/ State jurisdictions.

The states will be able to issue these alerts updates statewide or for the specific cities within their state.

The posts were seen and shared by the state health department pages on Facebook which are marked as COVID19 Announcements, their reach is intensified for the people who are located in the community.

Facebook will send the notifications to people located in the affected area, and will also show that information on the COVID19 Information Center.

This will help to collect the important and urgent updates related to COVID19 or the COVID19 Vaccination efforts for the people in the community.

The Facebook COVID19 Announcements can be used to communicate with the followings:

• Information on existing COVID19 resources, such as helplines
• Updates on hospital bed availability in the district, such as Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Beds and Oxygen supported Beds.
• Changes to existing COVID19 rules and regulations that can impact the communities and day-to-day actions, such as lockdowns, night curfews, and changes to treatment protocols.
• Getting the information about vaccine eligibility and registration, and the logistics of acquiring a vaccine.
• Accurate information on COVID19
• Preventive behavioral health measures to stop the spread of COVID19.