SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash — The 2020-2021 flu season in Spokane County reached its projected peak in January with 132 hospitalizations and four deaths, according to Spokane Regional Health District's Mark Springer.
While discussion around the foreign coronavirus has raised alarm, Springer said it’s important not to overlook the active and increasing flu cases regionally.
“We could lose sight or focus of what’s already happening right here already,” he said.
The district reported the flu season started in November, about a month earlier than its December start for previous years.
At the beginning of the season, researchers tracked more cases of Influenza B than Influenza A, which Springer said is rare.
By January, he said the number of cases for both strains were about equal.
Springer projected the season should end around March, as with previous years.
“Just in the meantime, minimize any risk of any respiratory infections. That’s all about hand hygiene, washing your hands,” he said.
The following is a press conference by Gov. Jay Inslee addressing the state's first case of coronavirus.