I'm an epidemiologist...(I study trends in human populations) so - yes - this is a wake-up call. A warning. A slap in the face. The tip of the Iceberg.
Things will get much worse...sooner or later; until we get to ZPG.
As long as we "value" or "welcome" growth....we are speeding up our "runaway freight train" of human population growth.
The more we grow...the more close we get, the more likely we are to breed stronger germs.
I'm afraid it's becoming the most likely thing to end our - and most land life's - existence on the planet.