Flu Sends 1,600 New Yorkers To Hospital In One Week, State Says

NEW YORK, NY — The flu is sickening New Yorkers at a record-breaking pace as the virus runs rampant across the nation, state officials said Thursday. The state Department of Health recorded 1,606 new influenza cases sending people to hospitals in the week ending Jan. 13 — the most in one week since record-keeping began in 1904 and a 54 percent increase from the week before.

The virus has sickened 17,362 people and hospitalized 5,267 in New York since the flu season began six weeks ago, officials said. All of the state's 62 counties reported new cases last week.

The spike comes as the virus runs rampant across the nation. The flu was widespread in every U.S. state except Hawaii and the District of Columbia as of Jan. 6, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Influenza is a potentially deadly disease, and getting vaccinated is the best thing New Yorkers can do to protect themselves and those around them, followed by good hand hygiene," Dr. Howard Zucker, the state health commissioner, said in a statement.

The flu continues to hit Central New York the hardest — the region saw about 46 cases per 100,000 people last week, the highest number in the state. New York City saw nearly 25 cases per 100,000 people, the lowest per-capita number in the state.

Most flu-stricken New Yorkers had Influenza A(H3), the most common strain of the virus circulating the nation. But state officials say Influenza B, against which the flu vaccine is more effective, is more prevalent in certain areas of the state.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday directed the Department of Health to coordinate with hospitals and health care agencies to track the availability of hospital beds and flu vaccines.

The flu season is near its peak in the U.S. Most people get sick between December and February, according to the CDC. Health officials say the vaccine is effective as long as the virus is circulating.

Seniors who are 65 or older, young children, pregnant women and people with chronic medical conditions are most vulnerable to the virus, state officials say. Officials urged New Yorkers to find the nearest clinic to get vaccinated.

Here's a map showing where you can get a flu shot if you haven't already.

(Lead image: A health worker prepares a flu shot in Colorado in 2013. Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)