It is fear mongering. The CDC attributed 61,000 deaths in the US to the flu in the 2017/2018 season alone.
The flu infects 50 million people in the US every year and kills 0.1% of them.
COVID-19 appears to have higher mortality by at least 20x.
It also appears to be more contagious.
But if it can't be contained before a vaccine is ready, and assuming it only infects the same number of people as the flu, a million could die.