CDC reports 216 child deaths this flu season, the most in 15 years

More U.S. children have died this flu season than at any time since the swine flu pandemic 15 years ago, according to a federal report released Friday.

The 216 pediatric deaths reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eclipse the 207 reported last year. It’s the most since the 2009-2010 H1N1 global flu pandemic.

The CDC estimated overall at least 47 million illnesses, 610,000 hospitalizations and 26,000 deaths from flu so far this season.

Since flu season is still ongoing, data is still preliminary and may change, the agency noted. 

“This number that we have now is almost certainly an undercount, and one that – when the season is declared over, and they compile all the data — it’s almost certain to go up,” Dr. Sean O’Leary of the American Academy of Pediatrics told The Associated Press. 

O’Leary, a University of Colorado pediatric infectious diseases specialist, added a large contributor to this season’s severity is that fewer children get flu shots.

The CDC recommends everyone ages 6 months and older get a yearly flu vaccine, but flu vaccination rate for U.S. children has fallen from about 64% five years ago to 49% this season.

“Unfortunately, coming out of the COVID pandemic, we have seen a rise in vaccine skepticism, people less willing to get vaccinated, and as we’ve seen with the pediatric flu vaccines, that has led to increased hospitalizations as well as, unfortunately, some deaths,” Dr. Céline Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News, previously told “CBS Mornings.”

While flu vaccinations may not prevent people from getting sick, research shows they are highly effective at preventing hospitalizations and deaths, O’Leary said, adding that the decline in vaccinations “is certainly playing a role” in this season’s loss of life.