SARS Outbreak In Maryland?

When several possible SARS cases surfaced in Maryland, health officials moved quickly, rushing out flyers to those who may have had contact with contagious patients.

Hospitals are warning "SARS has been detected," telling potential cases not to come in the front door, but to use a special entrance.

Of all the suspected cases in Maryland, many health officials were most concerned about the one at North Arundel hospital because the patient was said to have recently been on a trip to the very province in China where SARS first surfaced.

After hours of hospital tests, the patient, her husband and the baby they adopted in China were sent home. She spoke to CBS News Correspondent Sharyl Attkisson on the phone, but refused to be identified.

"They said my chest ex-ray was clear, which means I'm not 'probable' SARS, I'm only 'suspected' SARS, and that's why they sent me home," she said.

"The way we've gotten groceries for instance is a relative, we sent a grocery list by email, and she bought us groceries and left them on the front steps," she describes.

Health officials are simply "trusting" the family to abide by the quarantine, unlike China where patients may have to wear electronic tracking bracelets. This SARS scare is serving as a test case of the systems designed to respond to biological threats after 9-11.

As the human toll from severe acute respiratory syndrome mounted, countries hard hit by the flu-like disease were beginning to display symptoms of its economic impact.

The cost of SARS — which has already killed more than 260 and infected more than 4,300 worldwide — is being borne by investors, governments and the tourism industry in affected cities and countries.

In Toronto, which accounts for a fifth of the Canada's total economic activity, merchants are reporting business down — particularly among American tourists.

Stocks were lower across the board in Asian markets, as investors remained worried about the long-term economic impact of SARS.

China said it would spend $420 million to set up a nationwide health network to fight SARS and other medical emergencies. It has also earmarked $240 million to pay for emergency medical services for people with SARS who can't pay for their own care.

For camera and film giant Kodak, the profit picture has suddenly grown darker. With the outbreak of SARS hurting it's sales in Asia, Kodak's stock plummeted seven percent this week, as CBS News Correspondent Anthony Mason reports.

The U.S. is beginning feel the pain because in Asia, "SARS is a slow motion version of September 11, 2001, which saw the economy freeze in its feet," says Peter Kastner of the Aberdeen Group.

And that's troubling for American business, because while the U.S. economy has been trying to get back on its feet, China has become the world's fastest growing economy and a key outlet for American goods.

"It's a big market for everything. China has now because our largest trading partner even surpassing Japan," says Mark Zandi, an economist at Economy.com.

More than 15,000 U.S. companies do business in China, which is the world's second biggest consumer of computer technology. If, as some predict, SARS sends Asia into recession, it will effect the growth of many American businesses.

Meanwhile, more countries began to take stiffer actions to halt the spread of the disease.

Beijing city officials told 4,000 people suspected of being exposed to SARS to stay home and sealed off Ditan Hospital — the third medical center to be closed this month in the Chinese capital.

Authorities in Beijing have ordered citizens to remain in Beijing, to prevent the spread of the disease to rural areas, and are using random roadblocks to enforce the order, CBS News Correspondent Barry Petersen reports.

In the Taiwanese capital of Taipei, about 30 nurses and workers protested being quarantined for two weeks at the Hoping Hospital, which reported 10 probable SARS cases earlier this week. They complained that confining people could expose healthy staffers to the deadly disease.

"This is ridiculous. Why can't I go home?" yelled a woman with a gauze mask tightly strapped to her mouth. Taiwan has reported 41 probable cases, but no deaths.

In Hong Kong, local media accused the Hospital Authority of not providing enough protective gear for frontline workers — hundreds of whom have been sickened by SARS on the job.

A dozen Asian countries, including China, are considering a joint plan to strengthen their defenses against SARS. The plan, outlined by senior health officials at a conference in Malaysia, calls for mandatory health declarations for all passengers and travel bans on anyone with symptoms.

As to how many people will lose their lives from the disease, health officials are unsure.

The World Health Organization and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the death rate remains below 6 percent, but Hong Kong has revised its estimate from 5 percent to 7.2 percent. Two experts there say it could be as high as 10 percent.