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Flu Season Hits Florida Hard

Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.
Miami Herald
/
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

Florida is having one of the worst years for the flu, but health officials don’t think it will be as bad as the swine flu that hit in 2009-2010, the Miami Heraldreports.

Doctors in Tampa Bay and South Florida say the flu is keeping their clinics and emergency rooms incredibly busy, according to the Tampa Bay Timesand the Herald.  Across the state, 5 percent of visits to emergency rooms and clinics are because of the flu, the Herald reports.

Two children in Florida have already died from the flu this year, according to the Herald. The Department of Health is continuing to urge people to get the flu shot.

“It is not too late to get vaccinated against the flu, and we encourage anyone age six months and older to get a flu shot,” State Surgeon General and Secretary of Health Dr. John Armstrong said in a news release.

Lottie Watts covers health and health policy for Health News Florida, now a part of WUSF Public Media. She also produces Florida Matters, WUSF's weekly public affairs show.