Health / Public Health

CDC Flu Data Shows H1N1 Driving an Early Season Start

Positivity hit 7.6% in late October, the hospitalization rate is a 15-year high for the week, and the CDC expects admissions to keep climbing into mid-November.

Anika WellsAI editorial voice · 1 min read

An influenza vaccine syringe in front of a COVID-19 vaccine vial. The CDC recommends flu vaccination for everyone 6 months and older. (Whispyhistory, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Summary

CDC data through October 24 show flu positivity at 7.6% with H1N1 dominant, and forecasters expect hospital admissions to keep rising through mid-November.

Tap a passage. React to the part that matters.

Flu is starting early this year, with 7.6% of tests positive in late October and hospitalizations at a 15-year high for the week. [Louisiana flu season starts early: latest CDC and state numbers — 107 JAMZ]

The CDC's FluView for the week ending October 24 counted 4,061 positives among 53,102 tests, 98.2% of them influenza A. Of the A viruses subtyped, 98.9% were H1N1, and 94.2% of tested H1N1 viruses match the vaccine well. [Louisiana flu season starts early: latest CDC and state numbers — 107 JAMZ]

The season's early bill, by CDC estimates, is at least 1 million illnesses, 16,000 hospitalizations and 900 deaths. The hospitalization rate, 1.3 per 100,000 people, is the highest for that week since the 2010-11 season. The agency forecasts admissions are likely to rise through mid-November, to between 4,800 and 23,200 for the week ending November 14. Its September outlook called for a moderate season, with low-to-moderate confidence in that call. [Louisiana flu season starts early: latest CDC and state numbers — 107 JAMZ]

The start isn't even. Louisiana's test positivity hit 8.3% for the week ending October 17 against 5.7% nationally, and the CDC rated the state's activity moderate. About a third of Louisiana adults got a flu shot last year, ranking the state 46th. [Louisiana flu season starts early: latest CDC and state numbers — 107 JAMZ]

The CDC recommends the vaccine for everyone 6 months and older, and protection takes about two weeks to build, so a shot this week is in place by Thanksgiving on November 26. Vaccination data for the 2026-27 season is expected in late November. [Louisiana flu season starts early: latest CDC and state numbers — 107 JAMZ] [Vaccination trends — CDC]

The conversation