This flu season is shaping up as one of the most severe in recent memory — and it could get even worse, Alex Fitzpatrick writes.

• 😷 At least 11 million people have gotten sick, 120,000 have been hospitalized and 5,000 have died from the flu so far this season, per the latest CDC estimates — including nine pediatric deaths.
• 🦠 Flu activity levels were very high in over half of U.S. states as of the week ending Dec. 27, 2025, per the latest available data.

✈️ Recent holiday travel may have helped the virus spread even further.

• 📈 Dr. Robert Hopkins, medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, to AP: "The fact that we've seen steady increases over the last several weeks without much of a decline or even a flattening would suggest to me that we've got the peak ahead of us."

This season's outbreak is largely fueled by a so-called "super flu" — the "subclade K" variant of the H3N2 virus, which itself is a subtype of influenza A.

• 💉 That variant differs from what's in the latest flu shots, raising concerns that the vaccine may offer less protection.
• Still, experts recommend getting vaccinated anyway. Dr. Nehal Galal, a primary care physician at NewYork-Presbyterian and Columbia: "While it may not prevent illness entirely, it can still help reduce your risk of serious complications."

Nearly 44% of U.S. adults reported getting a flu shot as of Dec. 27, 2025, the CDC says, up from 41.6% at the same time the previous year.

• 👩‍⚕️ The Trump administration's newly overhauled childhood vaccination schedule, meanwhile, says parents should talk to their doctors before giving kids the flu vaccine, which was previously recommended for all children.

Go deeper.

Pittsburgh's largest and oldest newspaper will print its last issue on May 3, Axios Pittsburgh's Ryan Deto and Chrissy Suttles report.

• 🏆 The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has served the region in some form since 1786, winning multiple Pulitzers along the way.

⚫️🟡 The paper's parent company, Block Communications, at 1:30 p.m. today: "The Block family said it deeply regretted how the decision will affect Pittsburgh and the surrounding region."

• 📉 The Post-Gazette has lost more than $350 million over the past 20 years, Block says: "The realities facing local journalism make continued cash losses at this scale no longer sustainable."
• 💻 Staff were informed via Zoom just minutes before the announcement went public, per an internal email acquired by Axios.

🧑‍⚖️ Block recently lost its appeal of a ruling ordering it to reinstate the terms of a prior union contract and resume negotiations — a decision that led about two dozen workers to return after a three-year strike.

• In Block's statement: "Recent court decisions would require the Post-Gazette to operate under a 2014 labor contract that imposes on the Post-Gazette outdated and inflexible operational practices unsuited for today's local journalism."

Go deeper ... Get Axios Local.

1. 🛢️ The U.S. plans to control Venezuelan oil sales and revenue via U.S.-run accounts "indefinitely," Energy Secretary Chris Wright says. His comments help clarify the Trump administration's approach to Venezuela's oil since capturing leader Nicolás Maduro. Go deeper.
2. 🚢 The Coast Guard seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker after a cat-and-mouse chase across the Atlantic, despite the vessel being shadowed by a Russian submarine and Moscow publicly opposing its capture. Go deeper.
3. 🇬🇱 Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he'll meet with his Danish counterpart next week in Washington to discuss the crisis over Greenland. Go deeper.
4. 🎥 Warner Bros. Discovery's board unanimously rejected Paramount Skydance's updated hostile takeover bid, arguing the offer "is inferior given significant costs, risks and uncertainties as compared to the Netflix merger." Go deeper.

ChatGPT is getting a dedicated health tab, Axios' Ina Fried reports.

• 📱 The new feature, ChatGPT Health, allows users to bring in data from other apps and sources for AI analysis.

🏃 OpenAI says it's trying to address a world in which people have lots of data from medical devices, fitness trackers and electronic health records — but often struggle to make sense of all that information.

• 🤖 OpenAI CEO of Applications Fidji Simo: AI "has infinite time to research and explain things. It can put every question in the context of your entire medical history."

Go deeper.