This flu season is proving to be one of the most severe in recent history, exceeding even the swine flu outbreak of the early 2000s. Recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reveals alarming statistics: nearly 50,000 hospitalizations and 10 pediatric flu-related deaths in just the fifth week of 2025 alone. Since the season began on October 1st, the CDC estimates a staggering 24 million illnesses, 310,000 hospitalizations, and 13,000 deaths, with nearly 60 of those fatalities being children.

A flu vaccine displayed at a pharmacy in New York, Sept. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Mary Conlon, File)

While COVID-19 and RSV cases are declining nationwide, the flu, typically peaking in February, has caused widespread disruption, forcing school closures in several states. The Godley Independent School District in Texas, for instance, closed for several days due to nearly 700 student and staff absences in a single day, marking the worst flu season in recent memory for the district.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters in Atlanta.  (Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

CDC data indicates high or very high flu activity in 43 states during the fifth week of 2025, with particularly intense activity concentrated in Texas, New Mexico, Nebraska, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, South Carolina, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and New York City.

The CDC reported 43 states had high or very high flu activity in the fifth week of 2025. (CDC)

Despite recommendations for annual flu vaccination for individuals over six months old, only about 44% of adults and 45% of children received flu shots this winter. The effectiveness of this year's vaccine remains to be seen. Furthermore, the CDC is currently monitoring reports of a surge in human metapneumovirus (HMPV) in China, although it's currently at pre-pandemic levels in the US and presents with common cold-like symptoms.