The pandemic provides an opportunity for Taiwan to raise its international profile. But that is unlikely to go over well in Beijing, which is facing pressures for its own handling of the virus.

Grocery stores have carved out special shopping times for seniors and others. "Just to be able to spend that one-on-one time with ... them. They definitely make me laugh," Courtney Meadows says.

Covered faces means people who are deaf or hard-of hearing can't lip-read or follow facial expressions. And hospitals' tightened visitor restrictions may bar interpreters from medical appointments.

The project, run by the nonprofit EcoHealth Alliance, aimed to identify places to monitor, come up with strategies to prevent spillover of the virus and get a jump on creating vaccines and treatments.