During COVID-19 pandemic Google Limited Google My Business and Google maps Listing functionality. Meanwhile, in April 2020 Google issued a specific update for health care providers and medical professionals. In this specific update for health and medical professionals, Google  has introduced two new links in the Google My Business (GMB) dashboard under Info folder:

• New “COVID-19 info link” available in Google My Business for COVID-19 Update
• New “Virtual care link” available in Google My Business for Telehealth services.

New profile links. Google has dedicated GMB instructions for healthcare and medical professionals. Telemedicine is a custom service category that can be added to the GMB profile. (It will likely become a permanent service category post-COVID.) But now Google is calling out that capability with a specific link that will appear, though I was unable to find a live example, on profile and on Maps. There’s also the new COVID-19 info link to take users directly to relevant information.

Why it is important? Google has prioritized serving healthcare practitioners during a period of reduced support staffing for marketers. Consequently, many Google My Business updates have been taking much longer than normal to process and appear. And reviews have been suspended for the foreseeable future. (See, Should you continue to solicit reviews during the outbreak?)

Google recently released a best practices guide for healthcare providers. According to these instructions, a new support group for health organizations was created. In addition to Google’s best practices help page, health organizations can take part in a new technical support group that’s focused on helping health organizations who publish COVID-19 information with Search related questions. You have to Fill this form to request access to the COVID-19 Google Search group.

Its objective is to help them make their coronavirus information more accessible to the public through Google search and it might help to improve local SEO positions of your business. The company also created a technical support group for health organizations. These new links are part of Google’s larger effort to make healthcare information more accessible and to expedite the delivery of that information.