Jacksonville chief health officer talks rise in flu cases across US, what you can do to protect yourself

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Dr. Sunil Joshi, the city’s chief health officer talked with News4JAX from Mayor Donna Deegan’s town hall to talk about the spike in flu cases across the United States, what the city is doing, and what you can do to protect yourself.

Watch the full interview above.

“All we need to do is educate people and remind them about the importance of washing your hands and not being around other folks when you’re sick,” Joshi said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, there have been at least 20 million cases and at least 11 thousand deaths from the flu this season.

Joshi said in Northeast Florida, flu season starts at the end of fall into the early winter and it peaks around the holidays and ends as we get closer to March.

Health officials are seeing influenza A, which is generally more severe and known to cause pandemics like the 1918 flu pandemic.

“All we need to do is educate people and remind them about the importance of washing your hands and not being around other folks when you’re sick,” Joshi said.