I’m not sure if you could classify them as an overreaction yet could you? Or even at all. From what my simple mind understands it was a novel virus, meaning from animals, so we had no idea how it would react or mutate or anything. If someone in the medical field built a model they’re going to be on the conservative side for safety reasons, to avoid inherent risks. They can’t decide for a government how they react to that model. The model and the government’s reaction to the model are mutually exclusive.

I do think that once this virus started affecting the economy the Democrats saw it as a way to somehow help their chances for re-election but I don’t think the information was being rolled out in the beginning intentionally sensationalized from the medical professionals, I believe they were just preparing for the worst while hoping for the best.