Flu Sickens Hundreds More NYers Even As Spread Slows

NEW YORK — The number of New Yorkers sickened by the flu continued to rise last week even as the virus' spread appeared to slow, new statistics show. The state Department of Health recorded 3,681 flu cases across New York — including 1,821 in the five boroughs — in the week ending Jan. 5.

Those figures reflect a 16.7 percent increase from the prior week statewide and about a 10.3 percent jump in New York City.

That suggests the flu's prevalence is growing at a slower rate, as the number of new cases across the state had increased by 49.1 percent in the week ending Dec. 29. The number of people hospitalized with the flu statewide actually decreased 6 percent last week to 761, the Department of Health says.

Queens once again saw the most new flu cases of any county in the state last week with 590, followed by The Bronx with 441 and Brooklyn with 431, state figures show.

Some 12,233 New Yorkers have caught the virus since the flu season started in the fall, up from 11,270 at the same point last year, the statistics show. But last year's unusually nasty season did not reach its peak until mid-February, when more than 18,000 people were sickened in a single week.

The flu has killed just one child so far this season. The kid succumbed to the virus in New York City in October.

Health officials have urged New Yorkers to get vaccinated to protect themselves from the flu. You can find more information about the flu vaccine and its benefits here. And New Yorkers can find a place to get a shot on this map.

(Lead image: A flu vaccine is prepared for a patient in Miami, Florida in October 2018. Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)