Veterans and personnel will now be screened for coronavirus before entering VA facilities in southeastern North Carolina

FAYETTEVILLE, NC (WWAY) — To stop exposure or the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19), Fayetteville VA NC Coastal Health Care System will be screening all veterans, employees, visitors, volunteers, and contractors before entering any VA facilities in Southeastern North Carolina starting immediately.

Southeastern NC VA facilities impacted include Brunswick County, Cumberland County, Goldsboro, Hamlet, Jacksonville, Lee County, Fayetteville, Robeson County, and Wilmington.

A spokeswoman said the facilities are both staffed and supplied to manage potentially impacted veterans, and they are following CDC guidelines for intake precautions.

Fayetteville VA Coastal Health Care System is directing veterans to do the following:

• If veterans are experiencing acute respiratory symptoms, call 911, and contact your VA provider within 72 hours of emergency admission.
• If veterans have symptoms of coronavirus such as fever with cough or shortness of breath, please stay home and contact your primary care team or the Clinical Contact Center at 1-800-771-6106 and press 2 before coming to a VA facility. Clinical staff is available to provide 24/7 virtual care and support, including nurse advice and triage.
• Veterans who have traveled to a foreign country in the last 14 days or have direct contact with a person diagnosed with COVID-19, call 1-800-771-6106 and press 2 BEFORE coming to the clinic, even if symptoms are not present.
• Unless needed, we are asking patients not to bring visitors to appointments.

While the Department of Health and Human Services is leading the federal government’s COVID-19 response efforts, VA is monitoring the situation through its Emergency Management Coordination Cell and collaborating with public health officials from HHS and the Centers for Disease Control to ensure veterans benefit from the latest prevention, testing and treatment protocols and develop emergency management plans for medical centers.

A guide for veterans is here.

As an additional resource, North Carolina has set up a helpline, available 24/7 and staffed by nurses and pharmacists, to answer questions about coronavirus/COVID-19, including symptoms, how to reduce the risk of catching it, and what to do if coronavirus is suspected.

Call (866) 462-3821 and press 1 for English or to ask for a language interpreter. Spanish speakers should press 2. To submit questions online, go to www.ncpoisoncontrol.org and select “Chat.”