Flu cases, hospitalizations are steadily increasing
The year is soon coming to a close, but the pandemic isn’t showing any signs of slowing down.
And while the U.S. continues to report more than 800,000 coronavirus cases per week, health experts note flu cases and hospitalizations are also steadily increasing.
Flu cases haven’t reached pre-pandemic levels, yet. But as of Dec. 4, the Walgreens Flu Index reports flu activity is 335% higher nationwide this season compared to the 2020-21 season during the same period.
“Several southern states and markets are showing the most widespread flu activity this season, consistent with trends seen over the last two flu seasons,” said Dr. Kevin Ban, chief medical officer at Walgreens. “This may be due to the increased face-to-face interaction and reduced COVID-19 mitigation measures in certain regions.”
States that are reporting moderate to high levels of flu activity include New Mexico, Mississippi, and Georgia, according to a map on the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention website.
Weekly hospitalizations for the flu increased from 288 in the week ending
Oct. 30 to nearly 500 in the week ending Nov. 27.
It doesn’t compare to the nearly 90,000 COVID-19 hospitalizations reported last week, but health experts say hospital systems can’t handle any extra stress.
Hospitals in 39 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 36 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds, according to a USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data.
Health experts are also concerned about the availability of testing supplies as double the number of people are getting tested this season for flu compared to the 2019-2020 season. In the week ending Nov. 27, the CDC reported more than 43,000 specimens were tested for flu. Only about 21,000 specimens were tested during the same week in 2019.
The surge in testing is due to dual COVID-19 and flu testing, experts say. With a single swab, people can get tested for the coronavirus as well as influenza A and B. With COVID-19, flu and cold cases rising, more Americans are waking up with the sniffles and getting tested to find out if they need to quarantine.