It has certainly acted as a waking up point for many normies re: repatriation of key industries, and the threat of China maliciously using our supply chain reliance against us.
A great majority of every normie I have spoken to seem to be fully aware that this is a flu, and the panic is being driven by the media.
Everyone is concerned about the real effects of course, like on the economy, but this is just laying the gaslighting framework bare and galvanizing the public against it.