It has been 25 years since Florida has experienced such a severe flu season. According to NewsFOX 35 Orlando, the surge in cases was particularly noticeable after the holiday season. And even though the Sunshine State is one of the states with the highest transmission rates, the entire United States is currently experiencing its worst flu season in a quarter of a century!
Health authorities report that the 2024-2025 season is characterized by a later peak in activity than in previous years, and that the first weeks of 2026 show a marked increase in cases, well above the usual trends. The Florida Department of Health (FDOH) is also seeing a notable increase in flu-related emergency room visits. AdventHealth Centra Care clinics in Central Florida are seeing this firsthand, treating twice as many flu patients as they did during the same period last year.
According to 12 NEWS, doctors in South Florida are also seeing more patients with coughs, fevers, and other flu-like symptoms.
According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), most states reported “high” or “very high” levels of flu-like illness during Christmas week, with a record number of outpatient visits for flu symptoms. The reasons for this resurgence? Experts point to lower vaccination rates, record travel during the holiday season, and the arrival of subclade K, a variant of the seasonal influenza A H3N2 virus characterized by recent genetic mutations that make it dominant and put significant pressure on healthcare systems. According to Dr. Geeta Sood, an infectious disease expert at Johns Hopkins University, “All of these factors have created a somewhat perfect storm, resulting in more cases and more hospitalizations related to the flu this year than in previous years.”
And unfortunately, according to pediatrician Gayathri Kapoor at Orlando Health, this flu season is particularly affecting children. One of the flu strains has reportedly mutated, making it more aggressive. The result? More young people are becoming seriously ill and requiring hospitalization, sometimes even ventilation. The CDC reports that this season has caused the highest number of pediatric deaths in more than a decade.
In South Florida, Baptist Health South Florida reports an increase in the number of patients seeking treatment for flu symptoms compared to previous years. Broward Health has also seen an increase in cases over the last two months of 2025.
Most patients have tested positive for influenza A, but unlike in previous years, COVID cases remain relatively low.
The good news is that even though experts warn that it is too early to know if this trend will continue, visits to Miami-Dade emergency rooms for flu symptoms have recently begun to decline slightly.
Keep in mind that the flu season in Florida typically runs from October to May, with increased activity in the fall and a peak in winter/early spring, but the exact timing and severity vary from year to year.
