New York state health officials sounded a new alarm Thursday, warning that flu is already widespread across the Big Apple and saying it likely will only intensify, thanks to the compounding factor of the COVID pandemic.
That “widespread” determination comes when more than half of the state’s 62 counties report lab-confirmed cases — and New York is well above that benchmark already (71%). Health officials say the lab-confirmed case count has been rising since September and amounted to 596 as of the week ending Oct. 1 — and case rates have been particularly pronounced in the New York City area, Capital District and Central New York.
Upstate counties account for 57% of the nearly 600 confirmed cases to date — and the statewide total is already four times what it was during the relative time period last year, an increase of almost 300%. The numbers are continuing to increase week over week, officials say — and peak flu season, typically December through February, is still ahead.