Look to your left, to your right, and even in front of you. Chances are, one of those people likely has or has dealt with the flu. You’re not wrong if you feel like everyone you know is coming down with influenzaThis is projected to be the country’s worst bout with the flu since 2009, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There are expected to be 29 million cases in 2025.Hospitals, ERs, and other medical facilities are becoming overrun with flu patients. The hospitalizations have reached minimally 370,000, which shot past the previous high from the 2017-2018 season. More than 16,000 deaths have also been reported. THIS IS THE WORST FLU SEASON IN 15 YEARS
CNN spoke with a doctor from the University of Washington who called the high rate of flu patients, as much as 50 percent of those admitted, “really mind-blowing.” That’s certainly not reassuring. Dr. Mark Rupp, a professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, told TIME Magazine said this “is at least as bad as anything we’ve seen in recent memory.”
When asked to explain why that is, Rupp said it’s a “mystery” as to why different flu strains take off more than others.
LOW VACCINATION RATES ARE AIDING THE SPIKE OF FLU CASES
Only about 44 percent of people received flu vaccines, well below the CDC’s goal of 70 percent, according to TIME Magazine. Since the pandemic, the rate has steadily declined so it’s not all that surprising to see less than half the population vaccinated. It’s been the trend for four years.
Dr. Amesh Adalja from Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security told Fortune the low rates don’t result in the number of infections, but it can explain the hospitalizations, “I don’t think the low vaccination rate has a major impact on the dynamics of the season, but it does have an impact on the severity, especially pediatric hospitalizations, and deaths.”CHILDREN ARE HEAVILY IMPACTED THIS FLU SEASON
Less than half of children are also not vaccinated, per the CDC. That mixed with the young having immune systems that aren’t fully developed to combat illness has led to more and more kids suffering from the flu. It also doesn’t help that many of these children had immune systems not exposed as they normally would be during the pandemic, too.
There have been 68 pediatric deaths from the flu during this season. Dr. Andrew Norwalk of UPMC Children’s Hospital told the Pittsburgh Post Gazette that it’s become a perfect storm for why the youth are being hit so hard.
Influenza comes and goes and there are lighter years and heavier years. This is a heavier year, and you add into the fact that the vaccine match is not perfect, add into that that the uptake was poor this year, I think all of those things contribute,” he explained.
Things will only get worse as flu season still has a ways to go before it wraps up. Typically, the timeline goes into May, though February tends to be the most active as it’s proving to be this year.