Doctors at Christ Hospital say flu test positivity is six times the level typically seen in early October. Hamilton County residents are already landing in intensive care.

Dr. Thomas Lamarre, medical director of infectious diseases for the Christ Hospital Health Network, said the county saw seven or eight flu hospitalizations in a single recent week, with several patients admitted to the ICU, WLWT reported. Christ Hospital serves East Side neighborhoods including Hyde Park, Oakley and Mount Lookout.

"We've already seen in the past two weeks over 150 people hospitalized in the state of Ohio. Just this past week, seven or eight hospitalizations in Hamilton County alone," Lamarre said, adding that several cases had already been admitted to the ICU.

Lamarre said peak flu season, which normally arrives in January or February, could hit as early as November. That compressed timeline is why he and other experts are urging residents to get vaccinated before Halloween. The flu shot takes about two weeks to become effective.

New vaccine targets last season's dominant strain

This year's vaccine has been completely reformulated to target H3N2, the variant that dominated the 2025-2026 flu season. Lamarre said last season's vaccine was not a good match for that strain, though it still reduced hospitalizations by almost 40%.

Preliminary data suggests the new formula is a better fit. Lamarre said vaccine rates remain lower than doctors want them to be.

The 2024-2025 season was severe by any measure. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it produced the highest flu death rate the country has seen in five years. Lamarre said more than 300,000 people were hospitalized nationally, more than 20,000 died and 198 children died.

National numbers confirm early surge

CDC hospital reporting data for the week ending Oct. 3 shows the national flu hospitalization rate has been climbing since early September. During that week, hospitals reported 3,334 lab-confirmed flu admissions nationwide, a rate of 1.0 per 100,000 people. That rate increased compared to the prior week.

Adults 65 and older had the highest admission rate at 3.3 per 100,000, followed by adults 50 to 64 and children under 5.

Ohio sits in the CDC's Region 5, where flu positivity remained stable but continued to trend upward during that reporting period.

Lamarre urged residents to get the flu shot as soon as possible. Flu vaccines are available at pharmacies, primary care offices and local health departments across Hamilton County.