After several southeastern states reported an H1N1 outbreak this week, health officials in Florida and throughout the country are refreshing vaccination efforts in hopes of preventing a third wave of the virus.
Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina all reported a surge of H1N1 cases this week, a trend that is baffling health officials because spring usually marks the end of the flu season. The number of cases reported in Florida has remained steady.
“If anything, this influenza virus has been unpredictable,” said Paul Myers, assistant director of the Alachua County Health Department.
There have been 215 H1N1-related deaths in Florida and seven in Alachua County since April 2009.
There have been 1,012 H1N1-related hospitalizations in Georgia and 72 flu-related deaths, according to the Georgia Department of Community Health.
While Florida counties stopped tracking the number of individual cases around September, health officials have not seen any unusual spikes in the number of statewide cases, said Susan Smith, press secretary for the Florida Department of Health.
“We’re seeing exactly what we’re expecting to see,” Smith said. “I can’t speculate on why that’s happening in Georgia.”
Like the rest of Florida, Alachua County’s flu rate has remained steady, an achievement the Alachua County Health Department credits to its vaccination efforts. So far, more than 45,000 have been vaccinated in Alachua County.
