Flu season has taken a grim turn in Virginia, as the state’s health department has reported the first death of a child caused by complications associated with influenza.
Flu season has taken a grim turn in Virginia, as the state’s health department has reported the first death of a child caused by complications associated with influenza.
In order to protect the family’s privacy, the only information the Virginia Department of Health is releasing about the child is that they were age 4 or younger and that the death was reported in the eastern region of the state.
“We at the Virginia Department of Health, are broken hearted and extend our sympathies to the family of this child during this difficult time,” State Health Commissioner Karen Shelton said in a news release. “Even though the flu is common, it can cause serious illness and even death. I urge everyone who is eligible to receive the flu vaccine to do so not only to protect themselves, but to protect those around them.”
Lisa Sollot, respiratory disease program coordinator with the state health department, told WTOP it’s not too late to get the flu vaccine.
“This year, we were afforded a few extra weeks because activity started so late that I think it may have given us a little extra time for those who are may be procrastinating getting the vaccine,” she said. “We know that activity could start increasing at any minute, and so we know that there’s a lot ahead of us in terms of activity.”
“We do recommend the flu vaccine as the best way to protect yourself and others,” she added.
Sollot said it’s also important to take precautions, such as staying home when sick, avoiding others when they’re sick, cleaning high-tough surfaces and washing your hands frequently.
Since COVID-19 came into the picture, Sollot said flu season has become a bit more unpredictable and it’s important for people to remain vigilant.
“Typically, activity starts in about October, maybe November. And this year, we really didn’t have activity start until about December. And then it climbed rapidly, almost reaching last year’s peak, before also declining quickly, which is strange activity that we haven’t seen in the past,” she said.
“It has also made us think that this is not necessarily a true decline, and that it is possible that we could see activity surge again in the future, which is why these prevention tips are so important to help protect yourself and your family,” she added.
According to the state health department, less than 30% of eligible Virginians reported receiving a flu vaccine this season. Those interested in getting a flu shot can locate providers on the department’s website.
The state health department said the level of respiratory illnesses are considered “moderate” — where over 18.6% of emergency department visits can be attributed to the viral illnesses.
Last season was the deadliest flu season on record for children in the U.S., according to health officials in Virginia.
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
Flu cases are continuing to spike in the United States. New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that at least 5,000 people have died of the illness this year and that doctor’s visits for flu have reached their highest level in decades.
The CDC estimated there have been at least 11 million flu cases as of December 27, as well as at least 120,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths. There have been nine flu-related pediatric deaths, the CDC said.
At the same time, 8.2% of outpatient doctor’s visits nationwide were for flu-like illnesses, the CDC said. That’s the highest level recorded since 1997, according to CDC data.
Forty-eight jurisdictions are showing “high” or “very high” levels of flu, the agency said. Last week, 32 jurisdictions met that description.
Only four jurisdictions had low or minimal flu levels. Nevada has “insufficient data,” the CDC said.
A new subtype of influenza A called H3N2 is spreading quickly and fueling this year’s cases, experts told CBS News. The CDC reported that of the 994 influenza viruses that tested positive for flu between Dec. 20 and Dec. 27, 971 of them had influenza A. When 600 of those specimens were subtyped, 91.2% of them were found to be H3N2. The strain is known to cause tough flu seasons, especially for seniors, and is harder for the immune system to recognize.
At the same time, fewer people have received the flu vaccine. The CDC estimated that about 130 million doses of the flu vaccine had been given this year. On Monday, the CDC announced updates to its recommended childhood vaccine schedule. The changes included saying that children who are not high-risk should engage in “shared clinical decision-making” with their doctor about whether to get the flu vaccine. The American Academy of Pediatrics called the changes “dangerous” and said they would continue to share their own recommendations.
“Making these changes amid ongoing outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases shows a disregard for the real confusion families already face,” said Dr. Ronald G. Nahass, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, in a statement.
New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows flu cases continuing to spike around the country, with some areas seeing record cases of the illness.
The CDC estimated there have been at least 7.5 million flu cases this season as of Dec. 20, as well as at least 81,000 hospitalizations and 3,100 deaths. There have been eight flu-related pediatric deaths, the CDC said.
The CDC says 32 jurisdictions are showing “high” or “very high” levels of flu. Last week, just 17 jurisdictions were in those categories. Jurisdictions include all 50 states and some territories, as well as the District of Columbia and New York City.
A CDC map uses the proportion of outpatient visits to health care providers for influenza-like illnesses that include a fever plus a cough or sore throat to measure flu activity levels in the jurisdiction.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The New York State Department of Health said that it had seen about 71,000 cases for the week that ended Dec. 20 — the most ever recorded in one week since the department began tracking the illness in 2004. There were over 3,600 flu hospitalizations recorded in the state during the week.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health also recorded “high” flu activity. Boston announced a 114% increase in recent flu cases, with children seeing the biggest increase in cases. Meanwhile, a spike in cases prompted a Minnesota school to shift to online learning before Christmas. CBS News Minnesota reported that the state had seen 113 flu-related hospitalizations in 2025, more than double the number recorded last year.
Experts have expressed concern about this year’s flu season. A new subtype of influenza A called H3N2 is spreading quickly. The CDC reported that of 2,086 specimens that tested positive for flu between Dec. 13 and Dec. 20, 2,029 of them had influenza A. When 1,627 of those specimens were subtyped, 1,493, or nearly 92%, were found to be H3N2.
Jesse Bloom, a scientist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center who studies viral evolution, told CBS News that the virus has changed just enough to make it harder for people’s immune systems to recognize the illness. The strain is known for causing tougher flu seasons, especially for seniors.
Fewer people have also gotten flu shots this year. About 130 million doses of the flu vaccine have been administered nationwide, the CDC said.
Richard Webby, director of the World Health Organization’s Collaborating Centre for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals and Birds, said that while experts are expecting a “H3N2 mismatch,” the vaccine’s “match to H1N1 and flu B is expected to be good.” Meanwhile, early season data from the United Kingdom suggests that the vaccines are still helping prevent severe illness, especially in children.
“Getting the vaccine is something that people, particularly those who are in high-risk groups, can do,” Bloom said. “It’s not going to eliminate their chance of getting infected, but it does mitigate their risk.”
(CNN) — Most US states are experiencing high or very high flu activity, and levels continue to increase nationwide.
“Flu season is just getting started, so I think it’s really hard to say exactly what it’s going to look like,” Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, told CNN on Tuesday. “What we’re seeing right now is a very rapid escalation of cases.”
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that there have been at least 7,500,000 illnesses, 81,000 hospitalizations and 3,100 deaths from flu this season, according to an update published Tuesday with data through December 20. At least eight children have died from flu this season.
Among the states with the highest levels of flu activity are Colorado, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York and South Carolina, according to the CDC.
Trends are increasing across key surveillance metrics: Laboratory testing, outpatient health care visits, hospitalizations and mortality are all higher than they were in the previous weekly update from the CDC.
One surveillance system shows that flu hospitalizations have doubled; more than 19,000 people were admitted to the hospital with flu during the most recent week, up from about 9,900 the week before.
The CDC says that “severity indicators remain low at this time, but influenza activity is expected to continue for several weeks.”
Staying ahead of ‘super flu’
Influenza A(H3N2) viruses are the most commonly reported, and additional genetic testing suggests that a new flu variant — called subclade K — appears to be behind the vast majority of cases in the US. After driving high case numbers in other parts of the world, subclade K got the nickname “super flu.”
“This is a strain that’s different than what we’ve seen in previous years,” Osterholm said. He wouldn’t call it a “super strain,” he said, but “I would say it surely does challenge our previous immunity, in terms of protecting us.”
This new variant wasn’t included in this year’s flu shots because it was identified after scientists had chosen the strains to include, but the vaccines contain related strains, and globally, they seem to be working pretty well against the variant.
The CDC recommends that everyone age 6 months and older get a flu vaccine each season, but vaccination rates have been decreasing in recent years. Only about 130 million flu vaccines have been distributed this season, CDC data shows, 13 million fewer doses than at this point last year. Additional data suggests that only about 17% of children and 23% of adults had gotten their seasonal flu vaccine by the end of November.
Osterholm encourages people who haven’t been vaccinated against flu to act quickly as the virus is “wiping through” the country.
“It’s not too late to get your flu shot,” he said. “It doesn’t guarantee you won’t get flu. It doesn’t guarantee that you still won’t get sick, but it surely is a big improvement on what the otherwise outcome could be, of either being seriously ill or dying.”
Flu season is in full swing, with close to 5 million cases and nearly 2,000 deaths, including at least three children, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Kati Weis reports.
(CNN) — As millions of Americans hit the road or take to the skies for the holidays, another seasonal traveler is picking up speed: influenza.
Flu activity is already rising across the country. In the week ending December 13, roughly 4% of visits to health care providers were for respiratory illnesses, and nearly 10,000 patients were hospitalized with influenza, according to the latest data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, released Friday. So far, three children already have died from flu-related causes this flu season.
Those numbers mean the virus may be closer to home than many families realize. Holiday gatherings could include someone just recovering from the flu, or someone beginning to feel sick. Should they still show up to open presents on Christmas morning? How long should a visit be postponed before heading to grandma’s to bake cookies?
As flu cases climb, here are the flu-related rules families should know this holiday season.
If I’m having symptoms, when should I take a flu test?
There are several over-the-counter flu tests available in the United States, and they can be taken at home as a nasal swab, similar to Covid-19 tests.
Many doctors recommend taking a test as soon as you experience symptoms.
“Particularly if you’re a person in a high-risk group,” said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
“Those persons are people who are age 65 and older, anyone who has a chronic underlying medical condition, if you’re immune compromised, if you’re a pregnant person and very young children,” he said. “Those are all people who are in high-risk, and once they have symptoms, that’s the time to get tested, because we would have antivirals available to help keep you out of the hospital.”
Flu symptoms usually start suddenly with fever, chills, headache, body aches and fatigue, Dr. Pamela Lindor, a pediatrician at Bluebird Kids Health in Jacksonville, Florida, said in an email.
While you should quickly start treatment and avoid exposing others when you test positive for flu, “if the over the counter test is negative but your symptoms are severe, consider getting a more accurate test from your doctor or urgent care center,” she said.
Testing is key because once it is determined which respiratory illness you have, you can then receive appropriate treatment, Schaffner said.
“Flu is not the only illness we’re concerned about. Maybe you have Covid, and if you have Covid, we have another medication that could help keep you out of the hospital,” he said.
At what point should I take antiviral medications for flu?
Flu antiviral drugs, such as Tamiflu or Xofluza, are prescription medications, and they work best when started early, ideally within two days after flu symptoms begin.
“For the flu, if you are ill, the sooner you begin the antiviral, the more effective it is,” Schaffner said. “There is the 48-hour rule. That is, for it to be maximally effective, you have to initiate treatment within the first 48 hours after you get symptoms. But even after 48 hours – and this is especially true for high-risk people – you can still have some modulating effect of the antivirals.”
As soon as someone starts to show symptoms, they should stay home and avoid contact with other people to not spread the virus.
“You’re capable of transmitting the influenza virus the day before you get symptoms,” Schaffner said. “But nonetheless, wear a mask and avoid other people in your family as much as possible until your symptoms start to abate and you’ve had no fever for 24 hours without using Tylenol.”
According to the CDC, people can return to their normal activities when, for at least 24 hours, they have not had a fever without using fever-reduction medication, and their overall symptoms are improving.
“This will usually be at least 4-5 days,” Lindor said. “Flu is most contagious starting the day before symptoms develop and continuing for about one week.”
If I’m wearing a mask, can I still be around people for gatherings?
Some people who have symptoms or fever might be tempted to still visit family or open Christmas gifts with loved ones, as long as they wear a mask, but Schaffner still warned against it.
“If you’ve developed symptoms, I think you’ve got to stay home,” Schaffner said.
“Even if you say, ‘Well, I have these symptoms, but I’ll wear a mask.’ Yes, that will reduce the chance of spreading but not reduce it to zero. And guess what? It’s very hard to eat and drink with a mask on,” he said. “So, you will indeed be exposing people. And when you get to family members, even when you wear that mask, they’ll be hugging and kissing. These are very close circumstances, so you’ve got to restrain yourself and separate yourself, otherwise you are very much in danger of becoming a dreaded spreader.”
What should household members do if someone else in the home tests positive?
While someone with flu should take precautions to isolate themselves and not expose others, there are important steps their household members also can take to reduce their risk of getting sick.
“Good handwashing is very important to prevent spread,” Lindor said. “Common surfaces in the house should be disinfected.”
Can I take antivirals to prevent getting sick?
Some doctors may prescribe antiviral medications to people who have been exposed to someone with flu, but they are not yet showing signs or symptoms themselves, especially if that person is in a high-risk group.
“Tamiflu can be prescribed to people who have been exposed to the flu, and is usually taken for 7-10 days to prevent infection,” Lindor said. “Xofluza can also be used prophylactically, and only one dose is needed, for adults and children 5 or older.”
For example, a 22-year-old college student may travel home for Christmas to visit their grandfather. The next day, after they have already visited their grandfather, they test positive for the flu.
“Their grandfather is obviously in a high-risk group. Should the grandfather take Tamiflu for five days? That’s not a bad idea,” Schaffner said. “In that circumstance, it could very well avert the influenza infection.”
When do I know whether to go to the hospital?
It’s important to stay in contact with your doctor once you test positive for flu and experience worsening symptoms, especially if you are in a high-risk group, Schaffner said.
And with your doctor, “have those discussions about when it is that you need to go to the hospital,” he said. “But difficulty breathing, coughing up blood, really feeling terrible, temperatures of 103 or higher – all of those things are indicators that you really need medical attention.”
Some other “warning signs” that may require urgent medical attention include “dehydration, chest pain, lethargy, mental status changes, seizures or severe weakness,” Lindor said. “Confusion, behavior changes, or high persistent fever for over 3 days also warrant urgent medical attention.”
Is it too late to get a flu shot?
There is still time to receive your seasonal flu shot if you haven’t already.
“For all those people out there who are still well, if you haven’t been vaccinated, please get the vaccine. Don’t linger,” Schaffner said.
“That’s a holiday present to you and to everyone else around you,” he said. “There’s more than one kind of influenza virus out there, and the vaccine helps prevent serious disease due to three different types of influenza virus.”
Lindor said that overall, the best way to avoid having the flu disrupt family gatherings during the holidays is “for all family members to get their flu vaccine early in the flu season each year.”
Doctors and scientists say this year’s influenza season could be tougher than usual. A new version of the flu virus, called H3N2, is spreading quickly. At the same time, fewer people are getting flu shots.
“This flu season is no joke. We are seeing more cases than we would expect for this time of year,” Dr. Amanda Kravitz, a pediatrician at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, said on “CBS Mornings.” Specifically, she explained, “we are seeing influenza A, and within influenza A we are seeing a subtype or variant called H3N2.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 17 jurisdictions are reporting “high” or “very high” levels of flu.
“It’s pretty likely to be an H3N2-dominated flu season,” said Jesse Bloom, a scientist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center who studies viral evolution. “I don’t see any reason to think that this is an unprecedentedly bad one, but current indicators are that it may be substantially more severe than the typical winter flu season.”
Bloom said the H3N2 virus has changed just enough to make it harder for people’s immune systems to recognize, but a flu shot could still help.
“Getting the vaccine is something that people, particularly those who are in high-risk groups, can do,” he explained. “It’s not going to eliminate their chance of getting infected, but it does mitigate their risk.”
A changing virus
Other experts share Bloom’s concern. “I would say pretty worried,” said Dr. Helen Chu, a flu expert at the University of Washington. “Based on the U.K. and Japan data, it’s looking like it’s causing a lot of cases of flu and hospitalizations.”
She said flu activity “is starting everywhere right now,” overlapping with RSV but coming before a likely winter COVID-19 wave. Early flu vaccine data from other countries show good protection at first, around 70% in children, but that may not last.
“Total season effectiveness is probably going to actually be much, much lower,” Chu warned, because immunity fades over time.
Trevor Bedford, who also studies viral evolution at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, said H3N2 tends to evolve faster than other influenza strains.
“I expect more H3 incidence than the typical year and poorer vaccine effectiveness,” he said. These large “jumps” in how the virus appears to our immune system usually occur every three to four years, he explained.
Stephen Morse, an infectious disease epidemiologist at Columbia University, noted that influenza’s behavior still defies confident forecasting.
“Many excellent scientists have come to grief trying to predict what influenza will do — consider 1976,” he said, referring to a year with a notorious scare over a swine flu outbreak that didn’t end up spreading widely. He added that the emergence of the H3N2 K subclade was “one of those surprises,” and while surveillance detected it quickly, “the bad news is that we weren’t really prepared for it.”
Why that matters: H3N2 is known for causing tougher flu seasons, especially for seniors. The new strain has changed in ways that make it harder for the immune system to recognize, so more people may get sick and need hospital care.
The flu vaccine still helps
Even with these changes, doctors say the annual flu shot is still the best protection available.
“The match to H1N1 and flu B is expected to be good,” said Richard Webby, director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals and Birds. “Even though we are expecting a H3N2 mismatch, vaccine effectiveness doesn’t always correlate with vaccine match. … Bottom line, still a good idea to get the vaccine.”
Early-season data from the U.K. suggest the flu vaccine is still helping prevent severe illness, especially in children, even with the H3N2 mismatch. Protection in adults appears more modest and is expected to decline over time. Experts stress that flu vaccines are designed mainly to reduce severe disease, hospitalizations, and deaths — not necessarily to prevent every infection.
Dr. Gregory Gray, a professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the University of Texas Medical Branch, added that people who work with animals should also be vaccinated. “Persons working with cattle, poultry, and pigs should receive their annual influenza vaccine,” he said. That helps stop human viruses from mixing with animal ones and creating new strains that could be dangerous to both.
Morse also underscored the value of vaccination despite the virus’s unpredictability.
“I still advocate the annual influenza vaccine… It’s still a good precaution,” he said, pointing out that flu shots help protect against multiple circulating viruses, not just H3N2.
Flu symptoms to watch for, and what you can do
The CDC estimates there have been 4.6 million flu cases across the U.S. since this season began, and 1,900 patients have died from it, including at least three children.
“There are tons of these cases throughout the country, and it’s causing a very, very severe flu,” Kravitz said. “Symptoms that are very intense, they come on really, really rapidly. It’s very contagious, so it is spreading quickly through communities.”
Flu is often accompanied by “high, high fevers, like 103, 104 degrees Fahrenheit,” as well as body aches and cough, Kravitz said. In addition, she added, “we see vomiting in children this year, specifically with this variant of the flu.”
She advised parents to help keep their child hydrated, and “if the symptoms last a long time, more than four or five days, especially that high fever, it’s a good idea to call their pediatrician.”
Experts say there’s no need to panic, but it’s important to prepare.
“Get your vaccine,” Chu said. “It’s still not too late.” The shot helps protect against severe illness and may even give “some cross protection against H5N1 as well,” she added.
Doctors also stress the importance of early testing and treatment. Antiviral medications like Tamiflu and Xofluza still work against the flu strains circulating this season, including H3N2, but they work best when started within the first couple of days of symptoms — especially for older adults, young children, pregnant people, and those with chronic health conditions.
Gray said the country needs better flu testing and more vaccines for humans and livestock.
Webby summed it up simply: “It’s more of the same: vaccination, hygiene, and keeping an eye out for anything unusual.”
Bird flu still rare, but worth watching
The first human case of a bird flu strain, H5N5, was recently reported in Washington state. It has not spread to others, but scientists are watching closely.
“The risk to the general public from the H5N1 virus is still very low,” Webby said. “But an H5 pandemic could easily make the COVID-19 pandemic look like a cake walk.”
Chu said fall bird migrations make this the time of year when cases in birds, and sometimes in people, tend to rise.
“This is the time of year when we see the H5 cases,” she said. “But a lot of the surveillance programs have been defunded, so in Washington state, there’s not been as much as in years past.”
Morse warned that gaps in surveillance, especially in agriculture, leave room for dangerous blind spots.
Surveillance is still crucial. It needs to be sustained. … Agriculture especially has to do much more,” he said, noting that past outbreaks in pigs and cattle were missed until they were well underway.
Experts say avian flu remains a low risk for most people right now, but it is a low-probability, high-impact threat that requires close monitoring.
NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. flu season is starting slowly, and it’s unclear if it will be as bad as last winter’s, but some health experts are worried as U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data posted Friday shows a new version of the virus has emerged.
An early analysis suggests current vaccines may still be somewhat effective against the new version of the flu, which has been the main driver of recent infections, CDC data shows.
Some scientists and medical professionals are more worried about disappointing vaccination rates, a main reason why flu hospitalizations and deaths were unusually bad during last year’s flu season — one of the deadliest this century.
“I think we’re going to see a really severe season,” said Asefeh Faraz Covelli of the George Washington University School of Nursing.
Last winter, the overall flu hospitalization rate was the highest seen since the H1N1 flu pandemic 15 years ago. Flu was the underlying or a contributing cause of more than 18,000 deaths, and one seven-day stretch early this year saw more than 1,800 deaths — the highest one-week spike in at least a decade. Child flu deaths also were far higher than usual.
CDC data posted Friday showed low flu activity so far, with only one state — Louisiana — reporting moderate activity. Most of the reported infections have been in children, said the CDC’s Alicia Budd, who tracks flu infections for the Atlanta-based agency.
Most also have been a new version of the type A H3N2 virus that historically has caused the most hospitalizations and deaths in older people. That type is responsible for most flu infections so far this year, and more than half have been a new subclade K variant that is different from the strain this year’s flu shots were built to fight.
A preliminary analysis from the United Kingdom suggests the shots do provide at least partial protection, although it will take some time for scientists to know exactly how effective they are. Experts say any protection that softens the blow of a flu infection is important to get.
Flu seasons tend to get bad between December and February, and illnesses likely will accelerate as people travel and gather for Thanksgiving, Covelli said.
“I think it’s going to start picking up here,” she said. “This is the ideal time to get vaccinated.”
Researchers this year have been facing an unusual struggle to get a handle on how respiratory infection and vaccination rates have been trending.
They usually rely on the CDC for data, but a recent government shutdown halted data collection and reporting just as respiratory infections started ramping up.
Meanwhile, government efforts to promote disease-preventing shots have been more limited since U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was put in charge of the CDC and other federal health agencies. Kennedy, a leading anti-vaccine activist, has fostered uncertainty about the safety of vaccines, including flu shots that contained a preservative called thimerosal.
Indeed, vaccination rates against COVID-19 clearly continue to plummet, with about 6% of children and 14% of adults up to date on their shots, according to other CDC data posted Friday. Each figure is about 3 percentage points less than it was at this point last fall.
For the flu, vaccination trends are a little muddier. Some sources have suggested flu vaccinations are down. Over two million fewer flu shots were given at U.S. pharmacies through the end of October compared to last year, according to data from IQVIA, a health information and research company.
But the latest CDC data indicates that for children, the vaccination rate this year is about the same as it was at this point last fall, at 34%. And the vaccination rate for adults is up a few percentage points to about 37%, according to the CDC data, which relies on survey information.
It is early in the season and too early to know if the increase will be sustained or what is causing it, CDC officials said.
As of the beginning of November, the U.S. flu hospitalization rate is about the same as it was at the same point in 2024. Hospitalization rates for COVID-19 and another respiratory virus, RSV, are lower so far this season, according to another set of CDC data.
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
The United States may be heading into its second severe flu season in a row, driven by a mutated strain called subclade K that’s behind early surges in the United Kingdom, Canada and Japan.Last winter’s season was extreme, too. The U.S. had its highest rates of flu hospitalizations in nearly 15 years. At least 280 children died of influenza, the highest number since pediatric death numbers were required to be shared in 2004.Now, with a new variant in the mix, experts say we’re on track for a repeat. And with flu vaccinations down and holiday travel on the way, they worry that things may look much worse in the weeks ahead.The good news: Early analysis shows that this season’s flu shots offer some protection against being hospitalized with this variant, especially for kids. The bad news is that many Americans appear to be skipping their flu vaccines this year. New data from prescription data company IQVIA shows that vaccinations are down compared to where they usually are at this point in the year.A new playerFlu activity is low but rising quickly in the United States, according to the latest FluView report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Most of the flu viruses identified this season have been an A strain called H3N2, and half of those have come from subclade K, a variant that was responsible for a rougher-than-normal flu season this summer in the Southern Hemisphere.That variant wasn’t a major player when scientists decided which strains should be in the annual flu shots, so the vaccines cover a related but slightly different group of viruses.”It’s not like we’re expecting to get complete loss of protection for the vaccine, but perhaps we might expect a little bit of a drop-off if this is the virus that sort of dominates the season, and early indications are that’s probably going to be the case,” said Dr. Richard Webby, director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for studies on the ecology of influenza in animals and birds at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.Early analysis by the U.K. Health Security Agency shows that subclade K has seven gene changes on a key segment of the virus. Those mutations change the shape of this region, making it harder for the body’s defenses to recognize.”That’s the predominant thing that our immune system targets with antibodies, and that’s also pretty much what’s in the vaccine,” said Dr. Adam Lauring, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Michigan Medical School.UKHSA scientists found that the current flu vaccines are still providing decent protection against subclade K viruses. Vaccination cut the odds of an emergency department visit or hospitalization for the flu by almost 75% in children. The effectiveness for adults, even those over 65, was lower, about 30% to 40% against needing to visit the hospital or ER.But the scientists offer a caveat: These results are from early in the season, before the protection from seasonal flu vaccines has had time to wane or wear off. The findings are posted in a recent preprint study, which means it was published ahead of scrutiny from outside experts.Still, some protection is better than no protection, and while subclade K is expected to dominate the season, it won’t be the only flu strain circulating. No one gets to pick what they’re exposed to. Lauring said his daughter has just recovered from the flu, but it was a B-type strain.At the same time this new variant has emerged, flu vaccinations appear to be down in the U.S. According to IQVIA, about 64% of all flu vaccinations were administered at retail pharmacies, which administered roughly 26.5 million flu shots between August and the end of October. That’s more than 2 million fewer shots than the 28.7 million given over the same time frame in 2024.”I’m not surprised,” said Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, who directs the Pandemic Center at Brown University’s School of Public Health. Vaccine skepticism expressed by leaders of the US Department of Health and Human Services has “injected chaos into the whole vaccination system,” she said.”There’s been a lot of attention on really non-issues,” like vaccine ingredients and separating shots, that she thinks “at the best, left people confused but possibly at the worst have left people worried about getting vaccinated,” she added.Flu vaccinations have also fallen in Australia, where subclade K was the predominant virus this year. As a result, flu hit a record, with more than 443,000 cases. Flu season in the Southern Hemisphere typically runs from May to July, so infectious disease experts often look to those countries for a preview of what might be on the way to North America.”What they saw in Australia is that they had a bad season. And so it’s concerning for you and us, what’s coming,” said Dr. Earl Rubin, director of the infectious disease division at the Montreal Children’s Hospital in Canada.’This is the time we start to see the rise’It’s difficult to say whether subclade K actually makes a person sicker than other flu strains, but if it drives more cases, it will certainly drive hospitalizations too, Rubin said.”When you look at severity, the more cases you have, if the same percentage get hospitalized, obviously you’re going to have more hospitalization if you have more cases. So it sometimes will look like the severity is also worse,” he said.Lab testing data has begun to show an uptick in flu cases.”This is the time we start to see the rise,” said Dr. Allison McMullen, a clinical microbiologist at BioMerieux, which makes the BioFire test, a popular diagnostic tool for respiratory pathogens.The company anonymously compiles its test results into a syndromic surveillance tool, which can offer a glimpse of what bugs are making people sick at any given time. At the beginning of the month, less than 1% of tests were positive for type A flu. Now it’s 2.4% – still low numbers but going up briskly, which aligns with the CDC trend.”We’re going to start seeing heavy holiday travel before we know it,” McMullen added. “With the rising cases that we’re seeing the U.K. and Japan, it can definitely be a bellwether for what we’re going to see in North America.”Signals are also rising in wastewater, said Dr. Marlene Wolfe, an assistant professor of environmental health at Emory University. In October, 18% of samples in the WastewaterSCAN network — an academically led wastewater monitoring program based at Stanford University, in partnership with Emory — were positive for type A flu, Wolfe said. In November, that number had risen to 40%.”Flu is something where, when it’s not in season, we don’t detect it very frequently in wastewater,” Wolfe said. COVID, on the other hand, can be detected pretty much all the time, which makes it challenging to know if it’s going up or down, she said.The scientists can set a threshold for when they can declare that a specific area is in flu season, Wolfe says. So far, just four of the 147 sites they monitor in 40 states have reached that threshold. Those sites are in the Northeast — in Maine and Vermont — in Iowa and in Hawaii.”I am concerned, I guess, that we could have a big flu season this year based on what we’re seeing in other parts of the world, and particularly Europe and elsewhere,” Michigan’s Lauring said.”It’s not too late. Go and get your flu shot,” Lauring advised. “And be alert that it’s out there.”
The United States may be heading into its second severe flu season in a row, driven by a mutated strain called subclade K that’s behind early surges in the United Kingdom, Canada and Japan.
Last winter’s season was extreme, too.The U.S. had its highest rates of flu hospitalizations in nearly 15 years. At least 280 children died of influenza, the highest number since pediatric death numbers were required to be shared in 2004.
Now, with a new variant in the mix, experts say we’re on track for a repeat. And with flu vaccinations down and holiday travel on the way, they worry that things may look much worse in the weeks ahead.
The good news: Early analysis shows that this season’s flu shots offer some protection against being hospitalized with this variant, especially for kids. The bad news is that many Americans appear to be skipping their flu vaccines this year. New data from prescription data company IQVIA shows that vaccinations are down compared to where they usually are at this point in the year.
A new player
Flu activity is low but rising quickly in the United States, according to the latest FluView report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Most of the flu viruses identified this season have been an A strain called H3N2, and half of those have come from subclade K, a variant that was responsible for a rougher-than-normal flu season this summer in the Southern Hemisphere.
That variant wasn’t a major player when scientists decided which strains should be in the annual flu shots, so the vaccines cover a related but slightly different group of viruses.
“It’s not like we’re expecting to get complete loss of protection for the vaccine, but perhaps we might expect a little bit of a drop-off if this is the virus that sort of dominates the season, and early indications are that’s probably going to be the case,” said Dr. Richard Webby, director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for studies on the ecology of influenza in animals and birds at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Early analysis by the U.K. Health Security Agency shows that subclade K has seven gene changes on a key segment of the virus. Those mutations change the shape of this region, making it harder for the body’s defenses to recognize.
“That’s thepredominant thing that our immune system targets with antibodies, and that’s also pretty much what’s in the vaccine,” said Dr. Adam Lauring, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Michigan Medical School.
UKHSA scientists found that the current flu vaccines are still providing decent protection against subclade K viruses. Vaccination cut the odds of an emergency department visit or hospitalizationfor the flu by almost 75% in children. The effectiveness for adults, even those over 65, was lower, about 30% to 40% against needing to visit the hospital or ER.
But the scientists offer a caveat: These results are from early in the season, before the protection from seasonal flu vaccines has had time to wane or wear off. The findings are posted in a recent preprint study, which means it was published ahead of scrutiny from outside experts.
Still, some protection is better than no protection, and while subclade K is expected to dominate the season, it won’t be the only flu strain circulating. No one gets to pick what they’re exposed to. Lauring said his daughter has just recovered from the flu, but it was a B-type strain.
At the same time this new variant has emerged, flu vaccinations appear to be down in the U.S. According to IQVIA, about 64% of all flu vaccinations were administered at retail pharmacies, which administered roughly 26.5 million flu shots betweenAugust and the end of October. That’s more than 2 million fewer shots than the 28.7 million given over the same time frame in 2024.
“I’m not surprised,” said Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, who directs the Pandemic Center at Brown University’s School of Public Health. Vaccine skepticism expressed by leaders of the US Department of Health and Human Services has “injected chaos into the whole vaccination system,” she said.
“There’s been a lot of attention on really non-issues,” like vaccine ingredients and separating shots, that she thinks “at the best, left people confused but possibly at the worst have left people worried about getting vaccinated,” she added.
Flu vaccinations have also fallen in Australia, where subclade K was the predominant virusthis year. As a result, flu hit a record, with more than 443,000 cases. Flu season in the Southern Hemisphere typically runs from May to July, so infectious disease experts often look to those countries for a preview of what might be on the way to North America.
“What they saw in Australia is that they had a bad season. And so it’s concerning for you and us, what’s coming,” said Dr. Earl Rubin, director of the infectious disease division at the Montreal Children’s Hospital in Canada.
‘This is the time we start to see the rise’
It’s difficult to say whether subclade K actually makes a person sicker than other flu strains, but if it drives more cases, it will certainly drive hospitalizations too, Rubin said.
“When you look at severity, the more cases you have, if the same percentage get hospitalized, obviously you’re going to have more hospitalization if you have more cases. So it sometimes will look likethe severity is also worse,” he said.
Lab testing data has begun to show an uptick in flu cases.
“This is the time we start to see the rise,” said Dr. Allison McMullen, a clinical microbiologist at BioMerieux, which makes the BioFire test, a popular diagnostic tool for respiratory pathogens.
The company anonymously compiles its test results into a syndromic surveillance tool, which can offer a glimpse of what bugs are making people sick at any given time. At the beginning of the month, less than 1% of tests were positive for type A flu. Now it’s 2.4% – still low numbers but going up briskly, which aligns with the CDC trend.
“We’re going to start seeing heavy holiday travel before we know it,” McMullen added. “With the rising cases that we’re seeing the U.K. and Japan, it can definitely be a bellwether for what we’re going to see in North America.”
Signals are also rising in wastewater, said Dr. Marlene Wolfe, an assistant professor of environmental health at Emory University. In October, 18% of samples in the WastewaterSCAN network — an academically led wastewater monitoring program based at Stanford University, in partnership with Emory — were positive for type A flu, Wolfe said. In November, that number had risen to 40%.
“Flu is something where, when it’s not in season, we don’t detect it very frequently in wastewater,” Wolfe said. COVID, on the other hand, can be detected pretty much all the time, which makes it challenging to know if it’s going up or down, she said.
The scientists can set a threshold for when they can declare that a specific area is in flu season, Wolfe says. So far, just four of the 147 sites they monitor in 40 states have reached that threshold. Those sites are in the Northeast — in Maine and Vermont — in Iowa and in Hawaii.
“I am concerned, I guess, that we could have a big flu season this year based on what we’re seeing in other parts of the world, and particularly Europe and elsewhere,” Michigan’s Lauring said.
“It’s not too late. Go and get your flu shot,” Lauring advised. “And be alert that it’s out there.”
This year’s flu season may arrive later than usual, but that does not necessarily mean it will be mild. It does mean that it’s not too late to get your flu vaccine.
There is no one-to-one correlation between cold weather and getting sick.
That old adage about stepping outside and catching a cold does not tell the whole story. What does matter is that winter pushes people indoors and into closer contact, making it easier for viruses to spread.
Children’s National Hospital infectious disease physician Dr. Alexandra Yonts told WTOP that this year’s flu season may arrive later than usual, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it will be mild.
She warned flu cases could start climbing “after Christmas and New Year’s,” when people travel and families gather.
“Last year, almost 300 children died from influenza, and most of (them) were previously healthy,” Yonts said.
She said one reason the flu shot remains essential is for protecting people with respiratory illnesses, existing health conditions or weakened immune systems.
And no, the flu shot cannot give you the flu.
“In common vocabulary, we throw around the term ‘flu’ to mean any sort of viral illness that gives us a fever. But there are hosts of other viruses that are not covered by the influenza vaccine that can still make you sick,” she said. “Protecting you against influenza specifically is still a priority.”
Yonts added that getting vaccinated is especially important before visiting young children, elderly relatives or immunocompromised family members during the holidays.
“Think of it as doing it for those people, if you aren’t interested in doing it just for yourself,” she said.
If you’re behind, Yonts said getting both the flu shot and the updated COVID booster at the same visit is completely safe: “That has been studied, and it shows there’s no major difference in the side effects. If anything, you’re getting them both out of the way at once.”
Flu shots are recommended for those 6 months old and older, and doctors say it takes about two weeks to build full immunity.
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
(CNN) — The United States may be heading into its second severe flu season in a row, driven by a mutated strain called subclade K that’s behind early surges in the United Kingdom, Canada and Japan.
Last winter’s season was extreme, too.The US had its highest rates of flu hospitalizations in nearly 15 years. At least 280 children died of influenza, the highest number since pediatric death numbers were required to be shared in 2004.
Now, with a new variant in the mix, experts say we’re on track for a repeat. And with flu vaccinations down and holiday travel on the way, they worry that things may look much worse in the weeks ahead.
The good news: Early analysis shows that this season’s flu shots offer some protection against being hospitalized with this variant, especially for kids. The bad news is that many Americans appear to be skipping their flu vaccines this year. New data from prescription data company IQVIA shows that vaccinations are down compared to where they usually are at this point in the year.
A new player
Flu activity is low but rising quickly in the United States, according to the latest FluView report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Most of the flu viruses identified this season have been an A strain called H3N2, and half of those have come from subclade K, a variant that was responsible for a rougher-than-normal flu season this summer in the Southern Hemisphere.
That variant wasn’t a major player when scientists decided which strains should be in the annual flu shots, so the vaccines cover a related but slightly different group of viruses.
“It’s not like we’re expecting to get complete loss of protection for the vaccine, but perhaps we might expect a little bit of a drop-off if this is the virus that sort of dominates the season, and early indications are that’s probably going to be the case,” said Dr. Richard Webby, director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for studies on the ecology of influenza in animals and birds at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Early analysis by the UK Health Security Agency shows that subclade K has seven gene changes on a key segment of the virus. Those mutations change the shape of this region, making it harder for the body’s defenses to recognize.
“That’s thepredominant thing that our immune system targets with antibodies, and that’s also pretty much what’s in the vaccine,” said Dr. Adam Lauring, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Michigan Medical School.
UKHSA scientists found that the current flu vaccines are still providing decent protection against subclade K viruses. Vaccination cut the odds of an emergency department visit or hospitalizationfor the flu by almost 75% in children. The effectiveness for adults, even those over 65, was lower, about 30% to 40% against needing to visit the hospital or ER.
But the scientists offer a caveat: These results are from early in the season, before the protection from seasonal flu vaccines has had time to wane or wear off. The findings are posted in a recent preprint study, which means it was published ahead of scrutiny from outside experts.
Still, some protection is better than no protection, and while subclade K is expected to dominate the season, it won’t be the only flu strain circulating. No one gets to pick what they’re exposed to. Lauring said his daughter has just recovered from the flu, but it was a B-type strain.
At the same time this new variant has emerged, flu vaccinations appear to be down in the US. According to IQVIA, about 64% of all flu vaccinations were administered at retail pharmacies, which administered roughly 26.5 million flu shots betweenAugust and the end of October. That’s more than 2 million fewer shots than the 28.7 million given over the same time frame in 2024.
“I’m not surprised,” said Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, who directs the Pandemic Center at Brown University’s School of Public Health. Vaccine skepticism expressed by leaders of the US Department of Health and Human Services has “injected chaos into the whole vaccination system,” she said.
“There’s been a lot of attention on really non-issues,” like vaccine ingredients and separating shots, that “I think, at the best, left people confused but possibly at the worst have left people worried about getting vaccinated,” she added.
Flu vaccinations have also fallen in Australia, where subclade K was the predominant virusthis year. As a result, flu hit a record, with more than 443,000 cases. Flu season in the Southern Hemisphere typically runs from May to July, so infectious disease experts often look to those countries for a preview of what might be on the way to North America.
“What they saw in Australia is that they had a bad season. And so it’s concerning for you and us, what’s coming,” said Dr. Earl Rubin, director of the infectious disease division at the Montreal Children’s Hospital in Canada.
‘This is the time we start to see the rise’
It’s difficult to say whether subclade K actually makes a person sicker than other flu strains, but if it drives more cases, it will certainly drive hospitalizations too, Rubin said.
“When you look at severity, the more cases you have, if the same percentage get hospitalized, obviously you’re going to have more hospitalization if you have more cases. So it sometimes will look likethe severity is also worse,” he said.
Lab testing data has begun to show an uptick in flu cases.
“This is the time we start to see the rise,” said Dr. Allison McMullen, a clinical microbiologist at BioMerieux, which makes the BioFire test, a popular diagnostic tool for respiratory pathogens.
The company anonymously compiles its test results into a syndromic surveillance tool, which can offer a glimpse of what bugs are making people sick at any given time. At the beginning of the month, less than 1% of tests were positive for type A flu. Now it’s 2.4% – still low numbers but going up briskly, which aligns with the CDC trend.
“We’re going to start seeing heavy holiday travel before we know it,” McMullen added. “With the rising cases that we’re seeing the UK and Japan, it can definitely be a bellwether for what we’re going to see in North America.”
Signals are also rising in wastewater, said Dr. Marlene Wolfe, an assistant professor of environmental health at Emory University. In October, 18% of samples in the WastewaterSCAN network – an academically led wastewater monitoring program based at Stanford University, in partnership with Emory – were positive for type A flu, Wolfe said. In November, that number had risen to 40%.
“Flu is something where, when it’s not in season, we don’t detect it very frequently in wastewater,” Wolfe said. Covid, on the other hand, can be detected pretty much all the time, which makes it challenging to know if it’s going up or down, she said.
The scientists can set a threshold for when they can declare that a specific area is in flu season, Wolfe says. So far, just four of the 147 sites they monitor in 40 states have reached that threshold. Those sites are in the Northeast – in Maine and Vermont – in Iowa and in Hawaii.
“I am concerned, I guess, that we could have a big flu season this year based on what we’re seeing in other parts of the world, and particularly Europe and elsewhere,” Michigan’s Lauring said.
“It’s not too late. Go and get your flu shot,” Lauring advised. “And be alert that it’s out there.”
As the fall respiratory season approaches and differing recommendations for children’s COVID-19 and flu shots cause confusion, who should be getting vaccinated to protect against illness?
Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory committee, known as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, voted to change recommendations for the COVID-19 vaccine.
The ACIP’s recommendations are not the final say — they must be reviewed and approved by the CDC director to become official guidance. But CDC directors have almost always accepted the recommendations.
Here’s where recommendations currently stand.
Flu shots
Guidance on the flu shot for kids is consistent across top medical groups: Children 6 months and older are generally advised to get the shot.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) also recommends that everyone 6 months and older without medical contradictions get vaccinated.
For pregnant women, flu shots — specifically the injection, not the nasal spray — are also recommended by both the CDC and AAP.
Protecting kids from the flu is important because infections can lead to hospitalizations and sometimes be deadly, the CDC says. During the 2023-24 flu season, for example, the CDC reportednearly 200 flu-related deaths among children in the U.S. Most of them were eligible for a vaccine but were not fully vaccinated, the CDC said.
For the COVID-19 vaccine, advice currently varies.
The CDC says parents of healthy children ages 6 months to 17 years old should discuss the benefits with a health care provider and “may receive” it, but the agency stops short of recommending the shot. The agency broadly recommends COVID-19 vaccines for moderately or severely immunocompromised children.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, however, recently shared vaccine recommendations that, for the first time in three decades, differ from U.S. government advice. In the guidance, the AAP is “strongly recommending” COVID-19 shots for children ages 6 months to 2 years old. For older children, shots are also advised but it’s up to parents’ discretion, the AAP said.
Other top medical groups have also shared recommendations differing from the CDC’s advice.
For example, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, a medical association representing physicians and scientists who specialize in infectious diseases, recommends the COVID-19 vaccine for everyone ages 6 months and older.
And a group of four West Coast states has joined together to issue recommendations on COVID-19 shots and other vaccines that differ from CDC guidance. The West Coast Health Alliance recommends the COVID vaccine for all children 6 months to 23 months old and those 2 to 18 years old with risk factors or who have never been vaccinated.
The announcement was made last week in a joint statement from Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, all Democrats, saying they were putting safety before politics.
“Every resident will have access to the COVID vaccine, no exceptions,” Hochul said in a statement, which advises vaccinations for children 6 months to 18 years old.
CDC advisory panel’s proposed COVID changes
The CDC’s advisory committee, the ACIP, has undergone changes in recent months, with all new memberspicked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is known for raising doubts about vaccines.
In their latest meeting, the ACIP voted for people to make individual, informed decisions about COVID vaccination, and it declined to specifically recommend COVID vaccination. This is a change from current guidance, since it drops recommendations for even children at high risk.
The updated recommendations, which are not yet considered official but are expected to be soon, would include the following for children:
Individuals 6 months to 64 years: Vaccination based on individual-based decision-making — with an emphasis that the risk-benefit of vaccination is most favorable for individuals who are at an increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease and lowest for individuals who are not at an increased risk, according to the CDC list of COVID-19 risk factors.
Dr. Paul Offit — a vaccine researcher at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and a former government adviser who has sparred with Kennedy for years — said that with this proposed change, “the good news is anyone can get the vaccine.” But “the bad news is that no one is encouraged to get it even if you’re in a high-risk group,” he recently told The Associated Press.
Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said he expects confusion around the COVID vaccine due to the panel’s recent vote.
“What I think it means is that people are going to be uncertain whether or not the COVID-19 vaccine is a benefit to them,” he told CBS News on Friday.
Dr. Céline Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News, says there’s “a lot of noise out there” when it comes to vaccines, but advises parents to “stick the course” and talk to your doctor about making sure children get all their necessary vaccinations.
Sara Moniuszko is a health and lifestyle reporter at CBSNews.com. Previously, she wrote for USA Today, where she was selected to help launch the newspaper’s wellness vertical. She now covers breaking and trending news for CBS News’ HealthWatch.
The Food and Drug Administration announced Friday it had broadened the approval of the FluMist nasal spray to become the first “self-administered” influenza vaccine — though a delay in the change means the vaccine will not be available to ship to homes until next year’s flu season at the earliest.
“Today’s approval of the first influenza vaccine for self- or caregiver-administration provides a new option for receiving a safe and effective seasonal influenza vaccine potentially with greater convenience, flexibility and accessibility,” Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.
The FluMist vaccine, manufactured by AstraZeneca, had previously been approved back in 2003 to be given by health care providers similar to other flu shots. Now the vaccinemaker has approval to sell FluMist to adults for use at home on themselves or to administer to their children.
The FDA says patients will still need to get a prescription for the vaccine from a health care provider.
AstraZeneca says it plans to sell FluMist directly to patients through an online pharmacy. Adults will be able to complete a screening questionnaire to get the prescription, and then order shipments to their home.
There are also some limits to the kinds of people FluMist is recommended for. Since it uses a live but weakened version of the virus, some patients, like pregnant people or those who are severely immunocompromised, should not get this vaccine.
The FDA approved AstraZeneca’s FluMist flu vaccine spray for self-administered use at home.
AstraZeneca
FluMist is less commonly used these days by pharmacies and doctors, in part due to fallout from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendation in 2016 against use of the spray over “poor or relatively lower effectiveness” compared to other vaccines.
AstraZeneca later redesigned the antigens in the vaccine, earning back the CDC’s recommendation starting in 2018.
Since then, the CDC says it has not had enough data for new official effectiveness estimates comparing FluMist to other flu vaccines, “because of limited use” in the U.S.
But AstraZeneca has cited data showing the shot has had “comparable” effectiveness in Europe versus more widely used shots.
AstraZeneca had initially told investors it hoped the FDA would broaden approval in time for this flu season, after the company submitted data last year showing that adults were able to correctly follow instructions to administer the vaccine spray on their own.
AstraZeneca did not comment when asked why the FDA’s approval decision came later than the company previously said it expected.
“We’re working diligently to bring this ‘first-of-its-kind’ innovative and convenient self-administrated flu vaccine to consumers and look forward to launching FluMist Home as soon as next flu season,” a spokesperson for the company said in a statement.
The spokesperson said AstraZeneca needed time to work with its partners to “ensure a seamless customer experience” for FluMist’s rollout for home use.
Alexander Tin is a digital reporter for CBS News based in the Washington, D.C. bureau. He covers the Biden administration’s public health agencies, including the federal response to infectious disease outbreaks like COVID-19.
Geneva — The mpox outbreak is not another COVID-19, the World Health Organization said Tuesday, because much is already known about the virus and the means to control it. While more research is needed on the Clade 1b strain which prompted the United Nations agency to declare a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), the spread of mpox can be reined in, the WHO’s European director Hans Kluge said.
In July 2022, the WHO declared a PHEIC over the international outbreak of the less severe Clade 2b strain of mpox, which mostly affected gay and bisexual men. The alarm was lifted in May 2023.
“Mpox is not the new COVID,” Kluge insisted. “We know how to control mpox and, in the European region, the steps needed to eliminate its transmission altogether,” he told a media briefing in Geneva, via video-link.
“Two years ago, we controlled mpox in Europe thanks to the direct engagement with the most affected communities,” he said. We put in place robust surveillance; we thoroughly investigated new cases contacts; and we provided sound public health advice. Behavior change, non-discriminatory public health action, and mpox vaccination contributed to controlling the outbreak.”
Kluge said the risk to the general population from the virus was low.
“Are we going to go in lockdown in the WHO European region, [as if] it’s another COVID-19? The answer is clearly no,” he said.
Kluge said the predominant route of transmission remained close skin-to-skin contact, but he said it was possible that someone in the acute phase of mpox infection, especially with blisters in the mouth, could transmit the virus to close contacts by droplets, in circumstances such as in the home or in hospitals.
“The modes of transmission are still a bit unclear. More research is required,” he said.
WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said the agency was not recommending the use of masks.
“We are not recommending mass vaccination. We are recommending to use vaccines in outbreak settings for the groups who are most at risk,” he added.
Internally displaced women listen to Nathalie Kipenzi, a hygiene promoter, during an awareness campaign for mpox, an infectious disease that causes a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes and fever, at the Muja camp for the internally displaced in Nyiragongo territory, near Goma in North Kivu province, Democratic Republic of Congo, Aug. 19, 2024.
The WHO declaration came after the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared the outbreaks of mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) a public health emergency, with more than 500 deaths attributed to the disease, and called for international help to stop it spreading.
“This is something that should concern us all,” WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at the time. “The potential for further spread within Africa and beyond is very worrying.”
Nationally, the number of flu cases has decreased. But in some Southern states, flu activity is still high, including in Dallas County, Texas, where almost 20% of tests are positive. Omar Villafranca reports.
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
Flu cases are surging nationwide and 27 children are among those who have died this flu season. One hospital shares ways to be on the lookout for respiratory issues. Janet Shamlian reports.
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
With flu season in full swing, Riverside County public health officials are urging residents to get their vaccines and to take other precautions against respiratory viruses after reporting the county’s first two flu-related deaths this winter.
The deaths include a 73-year-old man and a 79-year-old woman from mid- and western Riverside County, respectively. Both had underlying health issues and died at local hospitals, according to county officials. No further information was immediately provided.
Last month, Los Angeles County confirmed its first flu death of the season. The deceased was an elderly resident with multiple underlying conditions and had no record of influenza vaccination this season, according to county health officials.
According to Riverside County’s weekly influenza surveillance report, current influenza-like illnesses activity levels are moderate in the area. The county typically logs people aged 65 and older as the bulk of pneumonia and influenza deaths in the county with few occurring among those 24 and younger. Data collected between Nov. 19-25 show pneumonia contributed to the bulk of deaths, which were largely affected by other diseases such as COVID-19.
“These tragedies remind us that influenza can be serious, especially for those who have health issues or weakened immune systems,” Dr. Geoffrey Leung, public health officer for Riverside County, said in a statement. “There are simple steps that can be taken to protect ourselves. Most important of these is to get vaccinated. We recommend that everyone over 6 months of age receive the flu vaccine.”
Respiratory viruses such as the flu and COVID-19 spread year-round but are more common in the United States between October and March. The virus is spread through coughing and sneezing. Anyone is prone to catch the virus but elderly people, children and those with weakened immune systems are more at risk.
Health officials urge people to stay up-to-date on vaccines, remain at home if sick, consider wearing a face mask, cover a cough or sneeze and wash hands throughout the day.
Winter is almost here, and with it may come runny noses, coughing, and congestion. But how do you know if you just have a common cold, or if you have one or more of the three respiratory viruses that make up the “tripledemic” – RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), COVID-19, and influenza?
A top-ranking Food and Drug Administration official, responsible for overseeing the approvals of the new vaccines now rolling out for this fall and winter’s three respiratory virus threats, said this month he is personally planning to space out his vaccinations over the coming weeks.
“Some people are saying, ‘Well, could I get RSV, COVID and the flu vaccine on the same day?’ Yes, indeed, you could. But honestly, I might not,” said Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.
Instead, he said he intended to get the COVID shot right away and the flu shot in early October.
Marks, who was speaking during a recent call with FDA stakeholders, stressed that he did not disagree with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which allows giving multiple different routine shots during the same visit. Doctors refer to this as “coadministration” or “simultaneous administration” of vaccines.
However, he acknowledged that getting up to three of the different vaccines at the same time could lead to more side effects — like stronger fatigue or a small fever — in the days after getting the shots.
Spacing out the shots by around two weeks could “minimize the chance of interactions, and minimize confusing side effects from one with another,” he said. They might be a good option for people who did not mind multiple trips to the pharmacy or their doctor’s office.
“I might just want to space them out a little bit. But if you had to drive a lot of miles to get the vaccines, then it might not be unreasonable to get all three of them at once,” said Marks.
Getting an updated COVID-19 vaccine now
Of the currently available options, Marks said that his plan was to get a dose of the updated COVID-19 vaccine first.
Health authorities have been fortunate to have a vaccine that appears likely to work well for protecting against the currently circulating strains of the virus, he said.
“It’s like having a bird in the hand. I have a bird in the hand, good match, a lot of COVID around, great time to go get vaccinated,” said Marks.
The FDA had selected the strain to target in the current batch of shots back in June, clearing the way for vaccine makers to ramp up their production ahead of a fall rollout.
Marks cited recent data suggesting that these updated vaccines, which have been revised from previous designs to now target the XBB.1.5 strain of the virus, would also work to boost protection against its closely-related descendants now dominant nationwide.
Early results shared by the vaccine makers with a CDC panel earlier this month also suggests that these updated shots will also work against the highly mutated BA.2.86 variant, which has been reported in a growing number of states.
Several leading COVID trends, like emergency department visits, have started to slow in recent weeks following a summer wave that began to accelerate last month. Another “moderate” wave is predicted to begin over the coming colder months, the CDC’s disease forecasters say, with that surge’s peak expected to arrive potentially earlier than it did last season.
Marks said it was possible that health authorities might allow for another dose to be offered to some vulnerable groups later in the fall and winter.
“I think if we saw that it appeared that people might benefit in a few months from an additional dose, we would probably work with our CDC colleagues to issue a recommendation at that time. But right now we are just talking about a single recommendation, a single dose,” he said.
Scheduling a flu shot for early October
By early next month, Marks said he plans to have received his flu shot.
“I usually get my influenza vaccine around October 1st,” Marks said.
This is later than some other health officials within the Biden administration. CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen posted on social media on Sept. 6 to say she had gotten vaccinated for the flu.
Similar to previous seasons, CDC’s official recommendations for this year are that “[flu] vaccination should ideally be offered during September or October.”
Marks said that the boost in protection offered by flu vaccines can wane, underscoring why the shots should not be given too early in the season, before the threat of infections ramps up. Flu season in the U.S. typically peaks between December and February, but can stretch into the spring.
The protection from a flu shot “has a little bit of a shorter life than we might like, in some ways it’s a little like the COVID vaccines,” Marks said.
Right now, weekly CDC data suggests flu activity remains at low levels in most parts of the country.
New options for RSV
Some Americans also have new options to be immunized for RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, for the first time this year.
Older adults, ages 60 and older, can get a dose of the new vaccines developed by Pfizer or GSK. The CDC recommends that shots be offered “as early as vaccine supply becomes available” this year.
CDC data suggests RSV infections have begun to accelerate in some parts of the country, with the steepest rises in the Southeast.
A panel of CDC advisers on Friday recommended that Pfizer’s new RSV vaccine should be given during pregnancy as well, in hopes of passing on protection to newborns during their most vulnerable early months of life. The panel recommended that pregnant people take one dose of the vaccine between weeks 32 and 36 of pregnancy.
A new antibody injection from Sanofi and AstraZeneca is also available for babies this year, which is recommended to be given to infants born ahead of this coming RSV season.
March 10, 2023 – The 2022-23 flu season lingered through the second half of January and most of February at the edge of its defined existence, but it now appears to be over.
For the CDC, the annual epidemic known as flu season “occurs when flu activity is higher than a CDC-defined ‘baseline’ value.” That value, expressed as the proportion of all outpatient visits involving influenza-like illness to health care providers in the U.S. Outpatient ILI Surveillance Network, is currently 2.5%.
Over the last 6 weeks, the national figure has been between 2.6% (Feb. 19-25), and 2.7% (Jan. 15-21). In other words, it has lingered like no flu season has lingered before, at least not since the CDC began setting a national baseline in 2007-08.
But for the week of Feb. 26 to March 4, outpatient flu-like illness visits represented just 2.4% of all visits, the CDC’s Influenza Division reported, dropping under the baseline for the first time since the first week of October 2022.
Back then, the early start to the flu season raised concern about a “tripledemic” involving respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and COVID-19. But by the time the flu season peaked, RSV activity had already started declining and the expected COVID surge never occurred, CDC data shows.
Since the start of the 2022-23 season, the United States has had at least 26 million flu illnesses, 290,000 hospitalizations, and 18,000 deaths, 125 of which were child deaths, the CDC estimates.
