February 7, 2024- For a second time this season, the flu is surging, with at least 41 states reporting high or very high levels of the virus, according to CBS News. Emergency room visits for the virus have shot up nearly 30% this week compared to the week before. Recent data from the CDC show there have been more than 20 million cases, 250,000 hospitalizations and over 11,000 deaths so far this flu season.
This season’s wave of flu cases is arriving later than it has in the past two years. After the COVID-19 pandemic, annual waves of influenza during the colder months increased weeks earlier than they had during many pre-pandemic seasons. This year, flu trends look to be closely in line with the 2019 to 2020 season, which also reached peak levels around the New Year.
Continue Reading from CBS News.