I do epidemiology work and agree, it's not as bad as the public response, which is nuts. In Australia everyone stocked up on toilet paper before we had 100 cases and now the supermarket shelves are empty. Corona virus is respiratory, not gastro. I saw the end of a cycling race in France, the winner was not allowed to receive his yellow jersey on the podium because of coronavirus. So they put it on him before he got in the podium - what is the difference? I think media coverage is largely to blame. I have seen few, if any, balanced pieces, even on sites that portray themselves as sensible. Just worst case headlines and quotes out of context.
Having said that, some people I work with do think there is a case for containment and trying to limit the immediate burden on the healthcare system. If there are too many people needing treatment for coronavirus then emergency help isn't available for others. South Korea got into trouble when one person with corona virus kept attending church services, so public gatherings can go wrong.