LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) – COVID-19 and flu cases are rising in Lexington.
The latest data from the health department showed 57 new flu cases last week and 412 new COVID-19 cases.
Health officials tell us a lot of the increase in cases can be attributed to our return to normalcy.
Officials at the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department say without masking, social distancing, and an emphasis on handwashing, these types of respiratory illnesses can spread and spread quickly.”
Christina King with the health department says, as of right now, we haven’t seen a spike in COVID cases as we have in previous winters, but flu is spreading at rates we haven’t seen in years.
“We’re still early in the season. We don’t typically peak in flu season until late January – mid-February. So, right now, at the beginning of the season, we’re already at 1,828 total cases and 10 total deaths. That is astronomically passing the last several years,” King said.
Those 10 deaths are the second most deaths we’ve seen in the last six flu season and our case count is 1,000 more cases than the next highest total we saw in the last six seasons.
King credits vaccinations for keeping our COVID numbers from spiking but says we may all be suffering from vaccine fatigue, which is contributing to the high number of flu cases.
“We can say that around 85-86% of all flu cases right now are in unvaccinated individuals,” King said. “We’ve heard the guidelines, we’ve heard the safety measures, we’ve heard ‘Get your vaccine,’ and people are just tired. You know you get tired of hearing the same thing over again. But it’s our job to say it as long we need to keep saying it.”
The health department is offering flu shots and COVID vaccines at their public health clinics on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. You can call ahead to get a same-day appointment.
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