YouTube launched a news shelf on its homepage dedicated to coronavirus coverage, the company announced Thursday.

The content will initially be available in 16 countries, and the company says it will expand it to more countries in the future.

We want everyone to have access to authoritative content during this trying time, so we’re launching a COVID-19 news shelf on our homepage in 16 countries. We’ll expand to more countries, as well. pic.twitter.com/nivKDZ2mHo — YouTubeInsider (@YouTubeInsider) March 19, 2020

YouTube announced the news on Twitter without giving any further details, such as the exact list of countries or the list of news outlets that are included in the program. We've asked the company for more details and will update this article when we hear back.

SEE ALSO: YouTube tells creators to expect more video removals during coronavirus pandemic

The announcement comes days after YouTube co-signed a joint industry statement on coronavirus, with Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Reddit, and Twitter.

"We’re helping millions of people stay connected while also jointly combating fraud and misinformation about the virus, elevating authoritative content on our platforms, and sharing critical updates in coordination with government healthcare agencies around the world," the statement said.

Image: Screenshot/YouTube

The company recently announced changes to its policy in a response to the coronavirus outbreak. According to the announcement, YouTube will rely less on human moderators to review content uploaded to its service, which may result in an increased number of video removals.

COVID-19 – the disease caused by coronavirus – has so far killed more than 8,700 and infected more than 209,000 people. The outbreak has been worsening in the U.S. in recent weeks, with more than 13,400 confirmed cases and 195 deaths.