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Sohn: Forget tariffs – it is coronavirus that will test our economic muscle against China

An Rong Xu,The New York Times/This woman in New York had already checked at multiple stores for masks before she was able to purchase five of them last week. For Americans with close ties to China, the coronavirus outbreak that started in the city of Wuhan and has spread to 17 countries has brought unexpected new worry, disappointment and scrutiny.
An Rong Xu,The New York Times/This woman in New York had already checked at multiple stores for masks before she was able to purchase five of them last week. For Americans with close ties to China, the coronavirus outbreak that started in the city of Wuhan and has spread to 17 countries has brought unexpected new worry, disappointment and scrutiny. An Rong Xu,The New York Times/This woman in New York had already checked at multiple stores for masks before she was able to purchase five of them last week. For Americans with close ties to China, the coronavirus outbreak that started in the city of Wuhan and has spread to 17 countries has brought unexpected new worry, disappointment and scrutiny.

By Pam Sohn 4 min read

Imagine the panic in Wuhan as Chinese authorities and businesses closed the gates on the city, leaving 11 million residents there in virtual isolation and de facto quarantine as the dreaded coronavirus spreads.

And yes, there’s panic elsewhere, too. As of Thursday, Chinese officials had confirmed over 8,100 cases of the mysterious illness – more than were sickened by SARS, a respiratory infection that that spread across China in 2002 and 2003, striking 5,327 people and killing 349. What’s more, this new bug has now spread to people in other countries – and to people who have never visited China.

But take a deep breath.

This coronavirus, officially known as 2019-nCoV, is merely the new kid on the block – albeit a strong one. Our run-of-the-mill old standby influenza already has sickened at least 15 million Americans this winter, hospitalizing 140,000 and killing 8,200, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

And flu season in America hasn’t even peaked. In a bad year, the plain old seasonal flu kills up to 61,000 Americans, yet health officials have to beg folks to get flu shots. Last year, fewer than half of U.S. adults did so.