PHOENIX — The flu season is starting off on a bad note.
The Arizona Department of Health Services reported that week one of the traditional flu season started with 96 cases statewide.
That total is 85 percent more than the number of cases in the first week of the 2022-23 flu season, and is 256 percent greater than the five-year average of first week cases.
Numbers for Graham and Greenlee counties have not yet been released. Graham County ended last year’s flu season with 2,585 cases, and Greenlee with 1,028.
To have the best chance at avoiding the flu this season, the Department of Health Services recommends a flu shot, plus regular washing of hands for least 20 seconds, covering coughs with a tissue or sleeve, avoid close contact with those who are sick, and staying home when sick.
