A devastating flu season has killed nearly 2,000 Americans, including at least three children, as the CDC reports close to 5 million infections nationwide and health officials warn the worst may be yet to come.
The surge has forced school closures in Georgia and Kansas, overwhelmed urgent care centers from New York to Louisiana, and more than doubled hospitalizations in some regions in less than a month, CBS News reported.
If you skipped your flu shot this season, doctors have a message for you: it's not too late.
It has become a refrain we've heard all fall: get your flu shot. This winter, doctors are still saying it as the number of flu cases is up coast to coast.
"My hope is that we're actually getting closer to the peak now," Dr. Ned Calonge, who serves as Colorado's chief medical officer, said.
The CDC reports that flu levels are the highest in New York, Colorado, and Louisiana. At least six people have died – one in New York, one in Colorado, and four in Louisiana.
At a Walgreens in New York City, pharmacist Ashley Almante got her flu shot amid the surge.
"I decided to get the flu shot now because I want to make sure I'm not sick for New Year's and I've seen so many people get it that it's actually scaring me. So I just wanna make sure I was safe," Almante said.
Urgent care centers and hospitals in the city have faced a spike of flu patients even earlier than usual in the season.
Some schools in Georgia and Kansas had so many students sick with the flu they had to close, prompting warnings from health officials concerned about spread from holiday travel.
"We recognize you want to be together, but if you're ill the best way to kind of keep your families safe is to say, maybe I shouldn't travel," Calonge said.
Anne Falkenhagen flew out of the New Orleans airport for a holiday vacation last week and came back with the flu.
"Suddenly, I start having this little scratch in my throat. So from being well to being very unwell within an hour," Falkenhagen said.
"You just start aching," Falkenhagen explained. "Your bones, your skin hurts. The headache is 24/7 and you have that persistent cough that you just cannot hold. I don't wish this on anybody."
In Louisiana, the number of people hospitalized by the flu has more than doubled in less than a month, and doctors say they're preparing for that number to keep rising.
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