Oregon flu season gets an early start

Driving the news: Emergency room visits for respiratory illnesses are rising as October begins, while COVID is also showing up increasingly in wastewater and hospitals, according to state data.

• Flu typically peaks between December and February, making the early uptick noteworthy.

By the numbers: About 3.2% of influenza tests came back positive in Oregon during the week ending Sept. 26, per state reports, up from 2.6% the prior week.

• COVID hospital use has also risen from late-summer lows, CDC data shows.

Zoom out: Washington and Oregon appear to be running ahead of much of the country, with the CDC still rating overall respiratory illness as very low nationally and flu activity as low.

💭 Kale's thought bubble: Meira and I both caught this year's flu bug while traveling for our work retreat last week.

• It laid us both out for days and, a week later, I still have a nasty cough and almost no energy.

What to do: Health officials recommend staying up to date on flu and COVID vaccinations, staying home when you're sick and taking added precautions around people at higher risk of severe illness.

The bottom line: If it feels like sick season started early this year, the numbers suggest you're not wrong.