They probably will, particularly if the WHO declare it an...

They probably will, particularly if the WHO declare it an international emergency, with the usual misguided best of intentions - you might recall the early calls of millions of SARS infections and hundreds of thousands of deaths back then. If you look at the growth in coronavirus cases its not actually exponential anymore and is moving towards linear growth. Far, far more people die from the flu globally. Like 200-300 times as many! Admittedly those viruses have a global footprint already.

Idiots like the LA Times are comparing it to Spanish-flu! Just to reiterate, it is a flu-like virus that has affected near 8,000 people and killed 170 in a month. Whilst that's awful, those deaths, like most flu deaths, are among old-people and invariably involve other ailments (weakened immune system). The influenza virus in the US alone, has caused between 140,000 – 810,000 hospitalizations and between 12,000 – 61,000 deaths annually since 2010. That's 1,000-5,000 deaths a month in the US from the flu alone as standard.

Estimates for flu-related deaths in China come in around 10,000 per month! People need to calm down. Provisions need to be made, but sensible ones that are pretty much the same precautions for common influenza viruses, which statistically you are still far more likely to die from.