Few places left untouched, flu grips most of the country hard now. Across America, only four states sit outside the worst wave. A fresh form of the virus, named subclade K, pushes through communities fast. High transmission marks nearly every region it reaches.
Fever paired with coughing or a sore Throat means more people visiting doctors now than any time since winter of ninety-seven. That’s what fresh numbers from the CDC show. The last time sickness hit this hard was during the late nineties flu wave.
“This is definitely a banner year,” said Dr. Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist and senior scholar at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “It’s the worst we’ve had in at least 20 years. We’re seeing a majority of the country is experiencing very high levels of activity, and we’re still in the thick of it.”
What stands out is how strong this season feels after last year’s tough flu run, she said – usually one rough stretch doesn’t follow another so soon.
Last week of the year saw nearly one in twelve doctor appointments tied to fever, cough, or similar signs across the country. Back then, just over six out of every hundred visits involved those issues, though that season moved fast too.
Folks in Massachusetts are seeing a big rise in flu cases, so local health teams suggest shots might help. A jump in infections has pushed experts there to recommend protection through vaccination.
Right now, clear thinking matters most, says Dr. Robbie Goldstein, head of public health. Serious illness is spreading fast – kids landing in hospital, parents facing unbearable grief. Medical centers are stretched thin. These germs aren’t minor threats; they can kill.
“There is a simple, effective, and available way to address these concerns: vaccines,” he added. “They can prevent serious illness and hospitalization. And they save lives. If you have not yet been vaccinated against flu or COVID-19 this season, now is the time. It is not too late. Choosing vaccination is choosing to protect yourself, your family, your friends, your colleagues, and your community.”
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Most of the country saw strong flu spread according to recent numbers. Only Montana and Vermont stood out with milder cases. In contrast, South Dakota and West Virginia sat somewhere in between. Notably, Nevada shared no update this time around. Still, it had logged serious flu rates just a week earlier.
This year’s flu wave isn’t breaking records when it comes to serious cases. So far, the total number of hospital stays ranks third since 2010-11 at this stage. Yet things might shift as infections spread further.
“In the next 48 hours, if you haven’t been vaccinated, get vaccinated. Don’t wait,” said Dr. Michael Osterholm who directs the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. “You know, you may still be able to protect yourself from the the last parts of the seasonal epidemic, but you know, it takes us, seven to 10 days to develop some immunity relative to the vaccine, and so you don’t have a lot of time to waste,” he added.
Right now, the CDC says around 11 million individuals got the flu this season. Hospital stays reached 120,000. Deaths linked to the virus hit 5,000.
A fresh report landed at the agency – another child lost to flu complications. That makes nine young lives gone since the season began.
Right now, fewer kids are getting flu shots compared to years ago. Back in 2019–2020, about half were vaccinated. That number has since slipped down to just 42%. Not every child is protected like before. One reason might be fading attention after the pandemic rush. Still, coverage remains below where it once was. This drop matters more as seasons change.
That morning, fresh numbers on influenza surfaced just as federal health officials detailed adjustments to when children receive certain immunizations. Instead of automatic doses, families might need a talk with their doctor first – this step is named shared clinical decision-making. Such a shift may limit how easily some kids can get the flu shot. By evening, both updates circulated widely.
“To back off on a flu recommendation in the midst of a pretty severe flu year seems to me to be pretty tone-deaf, and that’s coming off an influenza year where we had the most childhood deaths from influenza in many years,” said Dr. Sean O’Leary, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Committee on Infectious Diseases.
Fewer grown-ups getting shots now compared to before – almost 61 million back in 2019-20, but only about 48 million lately, numbers from the CDC say.
Fewer shots in arms? Rivers wasn’t buying that as the reason behind this year’s surge. Cases climbed fast, yet she saw different forces at work.
“The vaccine is not really expected to protect against infection and therefore transmission. It’s really just about preventing severe illness,” she said.
She points out that a fresh flu variant – subclade K, found in most lab-tested samples – is likely behind the surge. This form appears widespread. Its presence lines up closely with increased severity.
That version of the virus doesn’t look quite like ones we’ve fought before. Because of this small shift, it slips past what our bodies remember. Not identical, yet familiar – just off enough to cause trouble. Our protection falters when faced with its slight twist.
Later on, subclade K started moving through populations, well after the flu shot strains had already been picked. Because of that timing, the current vaccines might not stop it fully.
“I think that this virus, like we saw in Australia and Japan and to some degree in the United Kingdom, has some legs to it,” Osterholm said. “I think you’re going to continue to see activity in communities for at least another three to four weeks of some real, substantial nature.”