Originally Posted by RAHkid94

Death rate from the flu is .1%.

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/burden...-estimates.htm

Current estimated deaths from Coronavirus is roughly 2%.

https://amp.theguardian.com/world/20...wuhan-covid-19

WHO is estimating 60% of the population will catch it at some point.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.the...lds-population

This will likely get worse if hospitals start getting overwhelmed. There are not enough ICU beds in the US to meet the estimated demand. In addition to the 2% death rate, 3% face serious lung complications that will likely leave them permanently disabled.
If 60% of the planet gets infected, and ICU’s and standard of care are maintained, roughly 92 million people will die and 180 million will live with serious long term lung issues.

Am I going to lock myself in a basement and only leave in a biohazard suit? No. I’m in international airports full of travelers from around the world 4 days a week. If this spreads, I’m going to get it. But this is literally several orders of magnitude worse than the flu. While my chances of survival as a healthy, young-ish person are pretty good, I am very worried about accidentally infecting my elderly parents and very worried about the effects this will have on the economy. The sky is not falling but maybe it’s time to tighten the belt a little and take some basic health precautions.