A ‘tripledemic’ of flu, RSV and COVID is feared in California
The state has reported at least 2,700 cases of COVID-19 with more than 260 deaths so far.
A triad of flu, pneumonia and respiratory virus was forecast to hit California on Thursday, health officials warned, as a new strain of coronavirus was forecast to hit the state with an increased impact, a day after the pandemic hit the South-east Asia region.
“Today’s new flu virus has the potential to be a triple-threat in California,” the state public health chief, Dr. Nick Bontade, said in a statement earlier in the day.
“Flu, respiratory viruses and a new coronavirus all cause symptoms that can overlap, so it is crucial to stay vigilant,” he said.
The triple-threat of coronavirus, flu and RSV has become a top-of-mind issue for Californians who are already worried about how their respiratory diseases – the leading cause of death in the state – could be exacerbated by COVID-19.
The flu is spreading again in the United States, with an uptick in its number of reported cases. More than 20,000 people have recovered from the new H1N1 virus and an additional 8,700 cases are under investigation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday.
California has reported at least 2,700 cases of the novel coronavirus, which killed hundreds of people in China and infected at least 82,000 in 188 countries.
“A triad of flu, pneumonia and respiratory virus is expected to hit California,” said Dr. Nancy Spungen, the state epidemiologist for the health commission. “There is a lot of uncertainty now, and it will be difficult for us to come up with a lot of hard and fast guidance just based on what we have seen in other countries.”
In recent days, California’s Department of Public Health, the California Department of Health Care Services and federal health officials have started sharing data on cases, deaths and hospitalizations in all U.S. states, territories and localities.
On Monday, Bontade said more than 70 percent of all new cases were in people who
