Recent Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data reports that the most recent flu shot may be a poor match for this year's flu strain.
If you received the influenza vaccine at the start of the season but still got sick, you're not alone.
“We got the flu,” Taylor Adams, an Arroyo Grande resident, said.
Adams got the flu shot this year to protect herself from the virus, but it wasn't enough to keep her from catching a bug.
“We still got sick, but it wasn't as bad as it could've been,” Adams said.
The CDC found that this flu season is one of the worst flu seasons recorded from hospitals and doctor's offices since 2009.
More than 910,000 people are estimated to have been hospitalized with the flu since October 1, according to the CDC.
“My daughter is in kindergarten, so every two weeks, she's bringing something new home,” Adams said.
Dr. Penny Borenstein with the San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department says early data from the CDC suggests this season’s influenza vaccine may be a poor match for the current strain, which has caused a surge of illness this season.
“I'd expect it to remain kind of constant,” Luca Ornstil, a San Luis Obispo resident, said.
After 40 years of treating flu patients in SLO County, Dr. Brian Roberts with Med Stop Urgent Care Center says this is one of the busiest years on record for them.
“Luckily, I haven't gotten sick in the past six months or so, even with things going around the school. Even though I haven't gotten the flu shot, I haven't gotten any sickness,” Ornstil said.
Despite the intense surge of sickness across the country this season, the CDC believes flu season is winding down.
