Former Bucs quarterback Jameis Winston helps launch COVID-19 hotline
NFL Quarterback Jameis Winston and Dr. Scott Kelley teamed up to open a hotline to help answer coronavirus questions
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Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston has joined forces with an Alabama doctor to set up a hotline for people who have questions about COVID-19.
Winston, an Alabama native, told “America’s Newsroom” on Wednesday that he was “grateful to have this opportunity to be able to speak about how the African-American community has been affected by this.”
Statistics show the virus is taking a disproportionate toll on black people, most notably in cities like Chicago, Detroit and New Orleans.
Winston said that in his home area of Jefferson County, Ala., “they have completely shut down the county because of the spread of the coronavirus and I just really believe it's because of the resources that they lack, whether it's the local hospitals or the different machines.”
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He said that lack of resources is why he teamed up with Dr. Scott Kelley to create the hotline and “give people the luxury of just making a call from their own home and being safe and helping prevent any spread of this outrageous virus.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, the Alabama Department of Public Health had reported 2,369 confirmed coronavirus cases and 66 deaths.
Dr. Kelley said he wanted to help set up the hotline because “I thought people are scared and he [Winston] said the same thing to me and we thought about how we can best help people get information through this hotline that we have put up.”
"What it [the hotline] does is it walks people through a symptom checker backed by the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]," Kelley added. "It allows them, then, to figure out what the best course of action would be for them and then ultimately if they still want to talk to the doctor we can arrange that at no out-of-pocket cost to them and no co-pay.”
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“I think it's a no-brainer,” he continued. “It keeps people out of the emergency room, it frees up our resources so that we can take care of sick people so I think it's something that America needs right now.”
The toll-free number is: 1-844-TEST-COVID.
Fox News’ Robert Gearty contributed to this report.