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Covid, flu, West Nile virus, and plague
Substack • • health
Key Points:
- Covid-19 activity in California is elevated but declining, with a peak in wastewater levels about three weeks ago, and is expected to remain active for a few more weeks alongside rising flu cases.
- Flu season began nearly two months early, with transmission rates increasing daily; nearly 3 million Californians have received the flu vaccine so far, encouraging protection against the virus.
- West Nile virus cases are unusually high this year in California, with 252 human cases and 19 deaths reported, largely due to warm temperatures supporting mosquito populations; prevention focuses on avoiding mosquito bites.
- Plague remains extremely rare in California but is endemic in rural areas, primarily transmitted by fleas from infected rodents; recent news of a plague death in Russia raises concerns but poses no immediate risk to Californians.
- Public health officials recommend standard precautions such as vaccination, masking for high-risk individuals, mosquito bite prevention, and pet flea control to reduce risk from these infectious diseases.
