Overview
- England averaged 2,924 hospital flu patients per day in the week ending January 4, a 9% rise after two weekly declines.
- Operational pressures intensified in England, with bed occupancy just under 92% and ambulance handover delays hitting 33% at 30 minutes and 12% at over an hour.
- NHS England has delivered more than 18.6 million flu vaccines and will send reminders next week to parents of eligible children to book jabs.
- In the United States, about 40,000 people were hospitalized with flu in the week ending January 3 and at least 17 children have died this season, as the CDC says elevated activity could persist for weeks.
- H3N2—largely the subclade K variant—dominates recent samples, with disproportionate impacts on older adults and young children, and UK experts noting no decline yet in cases among those 85 and over.