Name: Flu cases reach 5-year high in Jackson County
Uploaded: 2026-01-05T02:28:53.661Z
Duration: 2 min 46 s
Description: Post-holiday flu cases in Jackson County are at a five-year high, with over 1,200 flu cases, as the new Subclade K strain spreads rapidly.

Post-holiday flu cases in Jackson County are at a five-year high, with over 1,200 flu cases, as the new Subclade K strain spreads rapidly.

Jackson County

Jackson County, Missouri, is facing its highest number of flu cases in five years, with over 1,200 cases reported and numbers continuing to rise. Health officials attribute the spike to a rapidly spreading strain called subclade K, which is not fully covered by this year's vaccine.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 7.5 million flu cases nationwide, with more than 3,000 deaths, including eight children. As students prepare to return to school, public health experts emphasize the importance of vaccination, monitoring symptoms, and keeping sick children at home to help prevent further spread.

Flu cases reach 5-year high in Jackson County

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 7.5 million people have had the flu so far this year. More than 3,000 have died from it, including eight children. Health experts in Kansas City are warning folks to be cautious and to take their health seriously. There's no guarantees, unfortunately, that we might not contract a respiratory illness, but there are things that we can do to reduce or mitigate the risk. The concern for safety is only growing as many students head back to school starting next week. KSHB 41 News reporter Olivia Acree spoke with Jackson County public health officials this week about what's driving the spike and how families can stay one step ahead of trouble. Olivia, good morning. Yeah, good morning. Well, and it's post-holidays still for us right now, and that's really not an unusual time to see a spike in flu cases, but what's unusual about this is how fast it's spreading, and that's what's concerning. So in Jackson County, flu cases are at 1,200 and climbing, and that was updated just this week. And now, like you said, with kids getting ready to go back to school, there's a couple things that people need to know as to hopefully keep their families safe. So I talked to a Jackson County public health official, and he said what's causing the spike in cases this year is a strain called subclade K that they were not expecting. And one thing to know about this strain is that it spreads easily, and this year's vaccine doesn't fully protect against it. And when I spoke to that Jackson County epidemiologist, he explained that symptoms can come on quickly, but most healthy people recover within a few days. It's immunocompromised populations that need to be extra cautious. And he also said it's not too late to get the vaccine. That's still the best line of defense. It's just that in some cases, people that are vaccinated may also come down with the flu virus. In addition to that, the vaccine also helps, at least if it doesn't do one thing. One thing that I know it does is that it prevents the severe complications. Now, with kids getting ready to go back, he said that parents should watch for some of those regular flu symptoms like fever, fatigue, body aches, those types of things. And also, if your kid has any of those symptoms, keep them home. That'll help hopefully stop some of that spread that we often see in classrooms. Jan? Well, Olivia, thank you. I do have a question. Do health officials expect these high flu numbers to stick around? So right now, flu season typically peaks, he said, between December and February, so it's not like we're going to see these go down this week, unfortunately. He said just keep being mindful of what you can do to be preventative. Absolutely. Olivia, thank you so much for all those great tips this morning. Stay warm out there.

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