COLUMBUS – Health officials are alerting Ohioans to an increase in flu cases, a sign we are entering the height of the flu season.
The 317 hospitalizations for flu during the week that ended Dec. 23 was an 87.6% increase over the week before.
Northeast and eastern Ohio have been hardest hit, reporting 152 new cases, according to the Ohio Department of Health’s Seasonal Influenza Activity Report.
The 39 hospitalizations in central Ohio is the third highest number among the state’s seven health regions.
The increase in flue cases comes amid a rise in respiratory virus ailments nationwide.
Health Department officials remind residents it’s not too late to get a flu shot.