If you feel like everyone is sick, you’re right.
The North State has “very high” flu activity right now, which is the highest level on the California Department of Public Health’s dashboard.
Butte County’s Health Officer Dr. Jarett Beaudoin said this flu season is worse than last year.
“There are flu tests that you can go to the pharmacy and buy. Just do yourself a favor and test yourself, and test yourself early.”- Dr. Jarett Beaudoin, Butte County Health Officer
Last week two Butte County residents in their 50s died of flu-related illness. And he said emergency rooms are seeing more walk-ins and more people are being hospitalized.
Seniors are especially vulnerable to the illness, Beaudoin said, but so are children under the age of five.
He said the county has had a number of reports of children needing to be flown out of the area due to being seriously ill with the flu.
“The emergency room in Butte County thought they were too sick to be cared for here in Butte County and had to fly them down to Sacramento,” he said.
If your child is sick, Beaudoin said to monitor them closely, especially if their temperature reaches 102°F. He also said it’s important to test for the flu because its symptoms match those of other common illnesses, like colds and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV).
“If you get sick, especially over the next month or so, there are flu tests that you can go to the pharmacy and buy,” he said. “Just do yourself a favor and test yourself, and test yourself early.”
Beaudoin said we’re about in the middle of the flu season, but it could last until April.
Due to that, he said there’s still time to get a flu vaccine if you haven’t yet.
