With 27 flu deaths and counting, California public health officials on Tuesday urged residents who have not yet received a flu vaccine to get one as soon as possible.
That’s because even though it’s still fairly early in the flu season, data the state is collecting indicates the virus — in this case influenza A (H3N2) — is widespread and worsening, said Dr. James Watt, who oversees the state’s communicable disease control center.
Watt said California’s flu season started in early November, about a month earlier than it normally kicks in. Since then, state reports show doctor’s office visits and hospitalizations from the flu and pneumonia are already at levels usually seen at the peak of flu season.
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