[LUmBULtERA]

I think it has largely to do with people not understanding the power of exponential growth.[0] It doesn't help that the U.S. President ambiguously referred to the coronavirus as "the new hoax".[1] Nor does it help, in my mind, for the U.S. President, Surgeon General, and countless public health officials to compare the current deaths due to COVID-19 to flu deaths.[2]

[0] https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/10/coronavir...

[1] https://www.factcheck.org/2020/03/trump-and-the-new-hoax/

[2] Check their official twitter accounts, press conferences, etc.