The CDC flu map shows a dramatic spread of red and purple right now
Last month, health-tech company Kinsa warned that the 2022-23 flu season could be the worst in six years, and now new data appears to be backing that up. According to the Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), America is currently awash in outpatient respiratory illnesses, which include the flu.
The Outpatient Respiratory Illness Activity Map shows that most states registered “very high” levels of respiratory illness for the week ending November 26, 2022, the latest week for which there is data available. “Very High” is the highest level of activity, and more than half of states and territories in the nation are at that level, which is color-coded as purple, brown, and mauve on the map.
Unfortunately, nearly all of the rest of the states are at the level just under the top, which is “High.” Only one state and one territory, New Hampshire and the Northern Mariana Islands, are at the lowest level of infections, designated “Minimal.” Just three states and one territory—Alaska, Michigan, Vermont, and the Virgin Islands—are at the second lowest level, designated “Low.”
To put in perspective just how bad flu and respiratory illnesses are spreading this season, check out the map below, which covered the same week in 2021. See all that green? That means nearly the entire country had minimal levels of flu and respiratory illnesses at the same time last year.
It’s worth mentioning that a lot more people were avoiding travel and staying indoors this time last year. In fact, late November was when the World Health Organization (WHO) first designated the omicron variant of COVID-19 as a “variant of concern.”
As for this current season, the CDC estimates that 8.7 million have fallen ill with the flu so far, resulting in 78,000 hospitalizations and 4,500 deaths. As for how to prevent the flu from ruining your holidays, the CDC says some of the best ways to defend yourself against it include getting the flu vaccine, washing your hands often, and avoiding touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
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