Disclaimer: these are my own opinions, I am not going to link for supporting evidence. I am just shooting off the cuff and I have no real expertise in the matte

Disclaimer: these are my own opinions, I am not going to link for supporting evidence. I am just shooting off the cuff and I have no real expertise in the matter: 1. from most reports this is spreading much faster than other diseases, such as the flu. Because of this it has a higher chance to overwhelm a countries healthcare services. Once that happens, mortality will spike. 2. it has a higher mortality rate, especially for elderly. And most importantly: 3. it is still new and it is harder to predict the outcomes and people are scared of the unknown. What you also have to keep in mind, the reaction isn't about the deaths that have already occurred. It is about trying to slow the exponential progression so that the demand for medical services are spread out over a longer time period, thus avoiding the overwhelming of our medical services.