A growing number of states are reporting high levels of respiratory virus activity as COVID-19 and flu admissions continue to rise across the country, according to updated CDC data.
Overall, 17 states and New York City reported high levels of respiratory virus for the week ending Dec. 9, up from 15 states that reported high levels the previous week.
Five states — Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and South Carolina — reported "very high" respiratory virus activity levels. Twelve states — Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Wyoming — and New York City reported "high" activity levels, which are a measure of the weekly percentage of visits to an outpatient healthcare provider or emergency department for fever and cough or sore throat.
COVID-19 and flu hospitalizations are also increasing. There were more than 23,000 new COVID admissions for the week ending Dec. 9, marking a 3% rise from the previous week and the fifth consecutive week of increase. There were more than 7,000 new flu hospitalizations in the same week. Overall, hospitalization rates are highest among children younger than 4 and adults 65 and older.
The CDC issued a health alert Dec. 14 warning clinicians and public health officials that low vaccination rates for COVID-19, flu and respiratory syncytial virus may lead to an increase in severe disease and strain on the healthcare system for the duration of this year's viral season.
"In some parts of the country, hospital beds for children are already nearly as full as they were this time last year," the agency said. "If these trends continue, the situation at the end of this month could again strain emergency departments and hospitals. Strain on the healthcare system could mean that patients with other serious health conditions may face delay in receiving care."