Hospitals Report Mild Flu Season

Health officials say that a predicted influenza epidemic has not occurred and that hospitals in the county have reported a low number of cases since the start of the flu season in December.

The number of actual cases is not tracked by the county’s Public Health Department, but an informal telephone poll of hospitals last month revealed a mild influenza season, Marilyn Billimek, county epidemiologist, said this week.

“The flu season has been very light,” she said.

In early October when flu shots were being administered, county officials predicted that this flu season could rival an epidemic that occurred in 1997-98.

Flu season runs from early December through the end of March.

“We believe that because it happened last year, it was possible again this year,” Billimek said. “But it just wasn’t there to spread around.”

Billimek said that throughout the state, the number of flu cases has stayed constant or decreased in comparison to past, non-epidemic years.

Conversely, a report released this season by Kaiser-Permanente showed an increase in cases at its facilities throughout California. Although Kaiser has clinics in Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley, there are no Kaiser-owned hospitals in Ventura County, Billimek said.