Walgreens Flu Index captures geographic flu activity expansion
DEERFIELD, Ill. - The Walgreens Flu Index on Thursday indicated that flu incidence is steadily expanding from its concentration in the South. While the top markets with flu activity presently are located predominantly across the South, this past week has seen markets within Wisconsin and Iowa realize significant flu activity gains.
For the week of Jan. 10, the top 10 markets with flu activity were:
Harlingen – Weslaco-Brownsville – McAllen, Texas;
Las Vegas;
Miami – Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.;
Oklahoma City;
El Paso, Texas (Las Cruces, N.M.);
Beaumont – Port Arthur, Texas;
Montgomery – Selma, Ala.;
Phoenix (Prescott), Ariz.;
Louisville, Ky.; and
Knoxville, Tenn.
The top 10 markets showing the greatest flu activity gains were:
Shreveport, La.;
Macon, Ga.;
Bakersfield, Calif.;
Montgomery – Selma, Ala.;
Monterey – Salinas, Calif.;
La Crosse – Eau Claire, Wis.;
Tri-Cities, Tenn. – Va.;
Myrtle Beach – Florence, S.C.;
Cedar Rapids – Waterloo – Iowa City – Dubuque, Iowa; and
Ft. Myers – Naples, Fla.
The Walgreens Flu Index is a weekly report developed to provide state- and market-specific information, and ranking of those experiencing the highest incidences of influenza across the country. The Flu Index does not provide data measuring actual levels or severity of flu activity, but rather, illustrates which populations are experiencing the most incidences each week based on Index methodology.