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I'm just imagining how this would seem in the US, for instance.

The latest SARS update from a hypothetical midwest state: All hospitals except say one city and one county hospital closing their ERs, having all patients go to one intake area for evaluation for SARS, then sent off to a) a hospital for obvious SARS patients, no matter what else is wrong, including a broken leg or hot appendix or b) a hospital which will keep patients quarantined until they come down with SARS or not, no matter what else is wrong, including sick gall bladders or breast lumps or c) a hospital that intakes anyone who can be proven not to have SARS--in other words, political officials, favored mistresses, community leaders, local folks able to bribe a doctor or d) a building which will keep everybody who has waited too long and is now dying of SARS, with a self-contained "disposal" unit.

All doctors' offices and urgent care clinics--closed.

*Sigh*. As I typed this speculation, it all began to seem too real...