I suspect that they have decided that they can manage a certain number of cases in the hospital system, and that whether or not an early stage victim is immediately hospitalized is decided partly on the basis of bed availability. The good sign here seems to be that the hospitals are now taking more of the early stage patients in, which would indicate a waning of the epidemic.
On another note, have you noticed how closely the China death figures correspond to the Hong Kong death figures? By coincidence, they are issued immediately after the HK figures each day, but unlike the HK figures, give no specifics on who died. Kinda like snatching a number out of thin air.
I hadn't noticed. However, that is no surprise since I rely on YOU for info like that. :-)
Keep up the great work!
BTW: We all know the China numbers are not reliable. But IF they were, they would be looking suspiciously like exponential growth has begun.
BTW2: It is interesting to see the latest set of restrictions the Chicoms have implemented in Beijing. The list of closures included internet cafes. Yesterday they were arresting people posting SARS "rumors" on the internet, too.