NY added 27K flu cases in 1 week. Here's what to know as hospitals brace for patient surges

New York’s weekly tally of flu cases topped 27,000 recently as hospitals braced for patient surges from rapidly spreading respiratory illnesses.

The historic flu spike comes as hospitals nationally faced the worst flu season in more than a decade and experts warned it is going to get worse.

A recent uptick in COVID-19 hospitalizations in New York also suggested the pandemic’s third winter wave could be starting here, though the severity remains unclear. The biggest rise in cases hit New York City and Long Island, which were raised to the highest COVID-19 risk level, prompting CDC to recommend wearing masks indoors in those communities.

Meanwhile, health care leaders are pleading with New Yorkers to get vaccinated to avoid overwhelming hospitals. Some upstate regions, including the Finger Lakes, currently reported having just 5% of beds available, compared to the 17% statewide average. By contrast, the Mid-Hudson region stood at 20%.

How many New Yorkers are getting COVID booster, flu shots?

But despite the health alerts, newly reported data show only about 11% of New Yorkers are up to date on COVID-19 vaccinations as many bivalent booster doses have sat on shelves since the September release.

Further, only about 2.8 million New Yorkers outside New York City, or roughly 25% of the population, has received a flu shot. And rural communities lagged behind suburban and urban places, federal data show.

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The low vaccination rates in New York previously triggered public health campaigns. Outreach launched in October has spotlighted research showing both the COVID-19 booster and flu shot are proving effective at limiting severe illness.

This year’s flu vaccine is a particularly good match for the three strains experts are seeing most often. But the prevalence of all three flu strains at the same time is what experts believe accounts, in part, for why it is such a tough season.

Experts noted it is never too late to get a flu shot. To find locations providing COVID-19 and flu vaccinations, visit the vaccines.gov website or call the helpline at 1-800-232-0233.

How bad is NY’s flu season?

To understand the severity of New York’s flu season, consider the then-record-breaking 2019-20 season had a peak of about 17,000 cases in its worst week.

By contrast, the 27,000 cases reported this season during Thanksgiving week could be followed by off-the-charts spikes after the virus spread at indoor gatherings, the latest data show. Indeed, the 27,000 cases in the week ending Nov. 26 had already spiked 76% from the week prior.

During that same period, the number of patients hospitalized statewide with lab-confirmed flu was 1,499, a 67% increase over the prior week.

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Monroe County has been especially hard-hit as it reported nearly 4,500 flu cases in the first two months of this season. That’s compared to about 5,700 cases over more than six months in the 2019-20 season.

By contrast, Westchester County had about 4,100 cases this season despite having 242,000 more residents than Monroe.

In coming weeks, flu cases are expected to keep growing as New Yorkers gather for holiday gatherings in coming weeks, as society has mostly abandoned indoor masking, social distancing and other measures that kept flu strains all but dormant earlier in the pandemic.

Has RSV peaked in NY?

Amid the troubling health news, however, a potential silver lining emerged as the respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, appeared to have peaked in mid-November, federal data show.

While RSV cases remained above typical levels, the downward trend could provide much-needed relief to hospitals, especially pediatric providers that struggled to treat waves of kids severely sickened by the virus.

What NY hospitals, state officials say about flu, COVID, RSV

State health officials said Monday that they are working with health systems to monitor hospital capacity as regional leaders balance patient loads.

Wendy Darwell, president and CEO of the Suburban Hospital Alliance, described the early spikes in flu and RSV as worrying, but noted many hospitals faced far higher patient loads at several points earlier in the pandemic.

The state’s so-called “surge and flex” rules require regional cooperation first and then set regional targets for when extraordinary measures must be taken, such as patient transfers amongst regions, she added.

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While much of the Hudson Valley had hospital capacity to spare, parts of upstate have already begun limiting elective care to free up space.

In addition to respiratory illness, some upstate hospitals faced added burdens of caring for well patients awaiting placement at nursing homes due to staffing issues.

“Our best shot at protecting ourselves and fellow New Yorkers from respiratory illnesses continues to be getting vaccinated, staying up to date on boosters, and practicing good hygiene," Gov. Kathy Hocul said in a statement.

Adrianna Rodriguez of USA TODAY contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on New York State Team: NY added 27,000 flu cases in one week. What you should know