RSV, COVID-19, Flu Hospitalizations Declining in February 2024

According to the U.S. government, the current respiratory season is ending with less impact on hospitalization than last year.

The combined weekly hospitalization rate for COVID-19 and influenza from the National Healthcare Safety Network during the week of December 30, 2023, was 87.5% of 2022's peak (16.8 vs 19.2 admissions per 100,000).

On February 8, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published potentially its last Outlook regarding respiratory disease for the remainder of the 2023-2024 season.

The CDC anticipates that total hospitalizations for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV will decline but remain elevated into February 2024.

• COVID-19 surveillance data, hospital admission forecasts, and growth estimates indicate that COVID-19 activity remains elevated but has decreased and is likely to continue decreasing into February.
• Hospital admission forecasts and growth estimates indicate that influenza activity will remain elevated into February. 
• RSV activity remains elevated but is decreasing nationally. The national per capita hospitalization rate remains lower than the peak for the last RSV season. 

The CDC wrote, 'We do not anticipate producing additional respiratory disease outlooks during the remainder of the 2023-2024 season. We continue to monitor respiratory diseases and will update this Outlook should we identify any unusual events, such as a significant resurgence of these diseases.'  

The final CDC Outlook is based on expert judgment, historical data, and scenario modeling.

From a prevention perspective, the CDC confirmed ample supplies of respiratory vaccines and antibody therapies are available at most clinics and pharmacies in the U.S.