Minnesota Flu Season in Full Swing, 1 Child Death Reported

ST. PAUL (AP) -- Minnesota has reported its first child death from the flu this season.

The weekly flu report shows a continued increase in flu activity across Minnesota. As of the week ending Jan. 6, the Minnesota Department of Health reports more than 1,700 flu-related hospitalizations, 55 outbreaks of influenza-like illness in long-term care facilities, 43 outbreaks in schools and one pediatric flu death this season.

Health officials say all those indicators point to a potentially severe flu season, and Minnesota may not have seen the peak of the season yet.

Kris Ehresmann, the Health Department's director of infectious disease, says Minnesotans should get their flu shot now if they haven't already. She says there's still a lot of flu season left, and that flu easily circulates through April and beyond.