With the situation at hospitals out of control and the penetration of the virus into the community, on the day that Huachang was sealed off the World Health Organization listed Taipei along with Beijing, Guangdong, Shanxi, and Hong Kong as an area of high incidence of SARS transmission. Suddenly, "sealing up Taipei" became a hot topic of discussion.
醫院失守、社區也被侵入，世界衛生組織 (WHO) 於華昌國宅封街當天，宣布台北亦屬 SARS 高度感染區，與大陸北京、廣東、山西及香港並列，「台北封城」之議也成為熱門話題。