At least 216 children died in first high severity US flu season in seven years, CDC says
At least 216 children have died of influenza in the US during the last flu season in what the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said was classified as the first high severity season overall and for all age groups since 2017-2018.That number marks the highest pediatric death toll in 15 years; the previous high reported for a regular (non-pandemic) season was 236 pediatric deaths in the 2009-2010 season, according to the CDC.More recently, 207 pediatric deaths were reported during the 2023-2024 season.Based on data from FluSurv-NET, the cumulative hospitalization rate for this season is the highest observed since the 2010-2011 season.It estimates that there have been at least 47m illnesses, 610,000 hospitalizations and 26,000 deaths from flu so far this season.
The high number of pediatric fatalities reported for the past flu season comes as health authorities in New York said that 25 children in the state had succumbed to influenza-associated pediatric deaths – the highest recorded amount ever in New York,“As we begin to analyze the data from the 2024-2025 influenza season, we see this flu season was a challenging flu season for all, yet particularly for children,” said New York state’s health commissioner, Dr James McDonald,The health commissioner warned that “misinformation around vaccines has in recent years contributed to a rise in vaccine hesitancy and declining vaccination rates”,Of the 25 pediatric deaths attributed to flu, only one involved a vaccinated child and five were below six-month age minimum to receive the flu vaccine,“We live in a challenging time, where honest objective information is sometimes blurred by misinformation – therefore, it remains the department’s goal to continue to provide as much education and information as possible about flu and other vaccines that remain our best protection against many viruses and preventable diseases,” McDonald said.
“Vaccines are the best protection we have, and do save lives, including the lives of very young children who are too young to receive certain vaccines.”The figures on pediatric deaths from influenza follow a winter of US hospitals reporting increases in pediatric flu cases, with many children experiencing severe complications such as pneumonia, dehydration and organ failure, according to the Washington Post.Hospital admissions for flu in children ages five to 17 increased by 145%, from 959 on 4 January to 2,348 on 1 February, according to an analysis from the American Academy of Pediatrics.At least 86 children had died of the flu as of 15 February, according to the CDC.The health agency estimated at the time that least 430,000 children and adults were hospitalized for flu between 1 October and 14 February.
Flu vaccination rates have been declining in recent years.The CDC reported in September that about 55.4% of US children between the ages of six months and 17 years old received at least one dose of the flu vaccine during the 2023-24 season, down from 57.4% in the 2022-23 season, and the 63.7% reported in the 2019-2020 season.
Health experts warned of a growing wave of vaccine hesitancy fueled in part by federal officials, including from Robert F Kennedy, the health and human services secretary,Soon after his Senate confirmation, Kennedy canceled a federal vaccine advisory committee meeting to help select next winter’s flu vaccine,Last month, Anita Patel, a pediatric critical-care doctor at Children’s National hospital in Washington DC, told the Washington Post that this was the most severe flu season she has seen in more than a decade,“Death is obviously the most severe outcome, but there is a huge spectrum between well and not well,” Patel told the Post,“The flu can take a previously healthy kid and land them on a ventilator.
”Last year, Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health warned that “misinformation about vaccines has proliferated on social media where it has led to rising levels of vaccine hesitancy at a faster rate than interventions are addressing it”,Researchers at the school reviewed existing research on the links between social media misinformation and vaccination rates to draw up a plan to produce more effective countermeasures,“Anti-vaccine misinformation is as old as vaccines themselves, but anti-vaccine campaigns have proliferated in recent years on social media – particularly since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic,” the study said,It pointed to a convergence of mass media, political rhetoric and genuine safety concerns for growing vaccine hesitancy, and raised the idea of “prebunking” in which social media users are taught about how “fake news” works before exposure,“Social media platforms are the epicenter of misinformation.
They also need to be part of the solution,” said lead author Kai Ruggeri, a Mailman school professor of health policy and management.“Misinformation is not new and its noxious consequences are not insurmountable, but its effect on vaccine hesitancy through social media is an urgent global threat to public health.”
UK politics: Tariffs cut on UK cars, steel and aluminium in US trade deal, says Starmer – as it happened
Keir Starmer is at a Jaguar Land Rover factory. Summing up the deal, he says:This is a deal that will protect British businesses and save thousands of jobs In Britain, really important, skilled, well paid jobs. It will remove tariffs on British steel and aluminium, reducing them to zero. It will provide vital assurances for our life sciences sector, so important to our economy, and grant unprecedented market access for British farmers without compromising our high standards.And he says the deal means US tariffs on cars from the UK will be cut from 27
Cars, steel, beef and films: the key points of the US-UK trade deal
The UK and US have announced a new trade deal, or at least some elements of it, following a slightly chaotic transatlantic speaker phone call between Keir Starmer and Donald Trump.So what does it involve – and what was left out? Here is what we know and don’t know.With Starmer heading to the Jaguar Land Rover plant in the Midlands to herald the announcement, this was expected to be a major part of the deal, and it is.Tariffs for UK cars imported into the US will be cut from 27.5% to 10%, up to a maximum of 100,000 cars a year, close to total exports last year
Reform’s success shows how little Labour has offered voters | Letters
Polly Toynbee is right that there will be far worse to come for Labour if it carries on down its road of making the poorest yet poorer (The lesson for Labour? Until it can improve local lives and stop fearing Farage, more losses are coming, 6 May). She says: “They will be challenged by Reform UK in towns such as Barnsley.” Barnsley is the 38th most deprived local authority in England. Almost a quarter of its children live in poverty. Reform is a party with no poverty-alleviation policies and a “contract” with voters that states: “All job seekers and those fit to work must find employment within 4 months or accept a job after 2 offers
Tell us: how will Labour’s planned disability welfare cuts affect you?
The Labour government has proposed £4.8bn in cuts to disability welfare payments, with a House of Commons vote expected in June.The move would impact about 3 million households and plans, among other things, to tighten eligibility for personal independence payments (Pip) and change universal credit’s health element – such as halving it for new claimants, freezing it for existing recipients, and consulting on raising the minimum age to 22 from 18.We want to hear from you. How will your household be affected by Labour’s planned cuts to disability welfare payments? How would this impact your situation? What are your views on Labour’s proposals?You can tell us how Labour's proposed welfare cuts might affect you by filling in the form below
Starmer and Trump to announce UK-US trade deal
The UK and US are poised to announce a trade agreement, the first by the White House since Donald Trump announced his sweeping global tariffs.Trump said it was “a very big and exciting day” for both countries before a press conference in the Oval Office on Thursday. Keir Starmer is planning to deliver his own press conference at around the same time.The leaders are expected to unveil a trade deal focused on lowering US tariffs on specific products, such as British steel, aluminium and cars.Trump said the agreement was “a full and comprehensive one that will cement the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom for many years to come”
Carla Denyer says she will not stand again as Greens co-leader
Carla Denyer has announced she will not stand again as the Greens’ co-leader, breaking up the party’s most electorally successful leadership duo, which delivered four MPs at last year’s general election.Denyer, who won the Bristol Central seat from Labour, said in a statement to the Guardian that she wanted to put all her efforts into her parliamentary role.She has served since 2021 as co-leader alongside Adrian Ramsay, who was also elected as an MP last July, for Waveney Valley. He must now decide whether to stand as a solo candidate or with someone else at the next leadership election. The party’s deputy leader, Zack Polanski, announced on Monday that he would stand
Aston Martin and Rolls-Royce share prices soar as manufacturers welcome US tariff cuts
UK interest rates fall to 4.25% as Bank of England announces a quarter-point cut
Wikipedia challenging UK law it says exposes it to ‘manipulation and vandalism’
Tech giants beat quarterly expectations as Trump’s tariffs hit the sector
Lions squad 2025: Farrell unveils 38-man squad with ‘wiggle room’ to add son Owen
Farrell plays the O2 Arena but Lions squad reveal slips up by ripping off fans