The current flu season is intensifying across the United States, with doctors’ visits for flu-like illness reaching their highest level in nearly 30 years and widespread activity reported in most states.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 1 in 10 outpatient visits nationwide — 8.2% — were for flu-like symptoms during the week ending Dec. 27. That is the highest level recorded since the agency began tracking such data in 1997. The flu has already caused more than 11 million illnesses this season, leading to about 120,000 hospitalizations and roughly 5,000 deaths, including nine children.
High or very high flu activity is now reported in 45 states. Only Montana, South Dakota, Vermont, and West Virginia are experiencing low to moderate spread, while data from Nevada was deemed insufficient. Health officials caution that the most recent figures do not yet capture the full impact of holiday travel and gatherings, which could drive cases higher in the coming weeks.
Hospitals in several regions are seeing a sharp rise in severe cases. At Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, emergency teams report an influx of patients with respiratory distress, extreme fatigue, and body aches, often complicated by simultaneous infections such as Covid-19 or RSV. Similar trends are being reported elsewhere, including at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center in Baltimore, where flu hospitalizations have more than doubled over the past two weeks.
The surge comes amid a significant policy shift at the federal level. Under guidance from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Department of Health and Human Services has removed the flu shot from the official childhood vaccination schedule. The move follows last season, which proved to be the deadliest on record for children since pediatric flu deaths began being tracked, with 289 fatalities reported.
Some pediatric and infectious disease specialists have raised concerns about pulling back vaccination recommendations during a season already marked by severe and widespread flu activity. As of this week, the CDC’s public guidance still states that everyone six months and older, with rare exceptions, should receive an annual flu vaccine.
Source: NBC News