This winter, the number of seasonal flu deaths in the United States exceeded the number of deaths from the COVID-19 virus for the first time in five years.Bloomberg reports, referring to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the US Department of Health.
"Flu overtakes COVID-19 as deadliest virus in US this winter, seasonal illness dominates pandemic pathogen for first time in five years"- the agency says in its article.
According to Bloomberg, the dominant strains this season are H1N1 and H3N2, with the latter causing more severe illness.
The agency says that since the COVID-19 virus began spreading widely in the United States in 2020, it has killed nearly 42 times as many people.than the flu. However, new preliminary data from the CDC shows
indicates that the dynamics will change in 2025.
The CDC estimates that since October 2024, at least 29 million people in the U.S. have gotten sick with the flu, 370,000 have been hospitalized, and 16,000 have died.
