COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to decline

For the week ending Jan. 27, there were 22,636 new COVID-19 hospital admissions, a 10.9% decrease from the week before. Test positivity also declined by 4.6% and is currently at 6.3% nationally. COVID-19 deaths, on the other hand, have remained steady.

Only one state, Vermont, reported a moderate increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations for the week ending Jan. 27. There were 13 states with substantial decreases and 18 states with moderate decreases in COVID-19 hospitalizations. The remaining states had stable hospitalization rates.

Currently, the omicron subvariant JN.1 continues to drive the majority of new COVID-19 cases in the United States. According to CDC data, JN.1 now makes up 93.1% of sequenced virus samples, an increase from 84.3% from the last update.

CDC also recently released an early analysis of the updated COVID-19 vaccines that were administered in the fall and winter. In the study, researchers analyzed data from 9,222 tests that were conducted at participating CVS and Walgreens pharmacies between Sept. 21, 2023, and Jan. 14, 2024.

Overall, the researchers found that vaccine effectiveness was 54% among adults ages 18 and older. Vaccine effectiveness was also slightly higher among individuals who had been vaccinated more recently. Among those who were tested seven to 59 days after being vaccinated, the effectiveness was 58%, compared to 49% who had been tested 60 to 119 days after their shot.

"We know that Covid is continuing to cause thousands of hospitalizations and hundreds of deaths in this country each week," said Ruth Link-Gelles, one of the study's authors who leads the vaccine effectiveness program in CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. "And 50% added protection against Covid-19 is really going to be a meaningful increase in protection, especially for those at highest risk."

According to Link-Gelles, although COVID-19 transmission has begun to decline, people who have not yet received an updated vaccine should still get one when possible. "Especially for our highest-risk individuals — people who are pregnant, people who have high-risk conditions — it's really important to go out if you have not already and get that vaccine this year," she said.

Flu activity may be rising again

For the week ending Jan. 27, three U.S. states reported very high levels of influenza-like illness (ILI), and 16 states reported high levels. An additional 13 states reported moderate levels of ILI activity. 

Overall, there were 12,186 new flu hospitalizations during this time, which did not change significantly from the week before. The percentage of outpatient provider ILI visits also remained stable at 4.3%, but it remains above the national baseline of 2.9%.

Although flu hospitalizations have been relatively stable in recent weeks, cases may be rising again. For the week ending Jan. 27, 16.2% of clinical lab samples tested positive for influenza, compared to 14.4% the week before.

So far, CDC estimates that there have been at least 20 million flu cases, 230 hospitalizations, and 14,000 deaths this flu season. There has also been a total of 65 pediatric flu deaths, with eight new deaths reported the week ending Jan. 27.

According to Kris Bryant, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Norton Children's Hospital and a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Infectious Diseases, this year's flu season seems to be relatively normal, at least regarding pediatric cases.

"So far, this seems like the typical flu season that we saw prior to the pandemic," Bryant said. "Recognize that a 'typical flu season' results in a lot of outpatient healthcare visits and hospitalizations and even some deaths in children."

Bryant also encouraged people to get vaccinated against the flu if they haven't already. "Vaccination is effective at preventing the most severe complication of flu," she said. "In some years, we see flu cases throughout the spring. It is not too late to receive a flu shot." (Kahn, MedPage Today, 2/1; Choi, The Hill, 2/1; Branswell, STAT, 2/1; Bettelheim, Axios, 2/5; Schnirring, CIDRAP, 2/2; Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 2/3; CDC COVID Data Tracker, accessed 2/5; CDC Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report, accessed 2/5)

Given the influx of respiratory diseases in the United States, health experts are advising caution this season. Here are five ways you can keep safe.