A total of 333 new flu cases have been confirmed across Pennsylvania, bringing the season tally to 98,453, and 15 more deaths attributed to the flu, bringing the season tally to 157, according to the state Department of Health.
Experts say only a small fraction of cases are confirmed, as many people who get the flu aren't tested.
Latest #flu report @PAHealthDept shows new cases are way down but new deaths -- 15 statewide in the last week -- are second-highest they've been all season, behind only the 16 in mid-March at the peak of the season. https://t.co/tCfv4fkFja pic.twitter.com/ijqfV3t6Jb
— Heather Stauffer (@HStaufferLNP) May 14, 2019
According to Associated Press reporting, this was the longest U.S. flu season in at least a decade.
The latest Pennsylvania report, dated May 11, shows a season tally of 2,355 confirmed cases in Lancaster County, up three since last report.
The department doesn't say where in the state flu deaths happened, but per the last reports from Lancaster County hospitals there have been seven here. Three were women, one in the 65+ age group and two in the 50-64 age group, and three were men, both in the 65+ age group; LNP was not given an age and gender for the seventh.
Of the people who have died statewide, the department reported two were in the 0-18 age group; 13 were in the 19-49 age group; 35 were in the 50-64 age group; and 107 were age 65 or older.
A preliminary estimate from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention recently says this season the flu shot is 47 percent effective in preventing illness severe enough to send someone to the doctor's office. Last season's preliminary estimate was 36 percent.
The CDC recommends that everyone 6 months of age and older get a flu shot each year, with rare exceptions.
The 2018-2019 #flu season has been less severe than last season, however, CDC still estimates that more than 500,000 people were hospitalized from flu as of 5/4. Learn more: https://t.co/0eyjGsn5Ak. pic.twitter.com/dJXNLGXqvq
— CDC Flu (@CDCFlu) May 15, 2019