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Health officials warn of COVID-flu collision

Concerns are rising about the possibility of a "twindemic" of COVID-19 and influenza as the seasons for the two respiratory infections collide this winter.

A sign on a street directs people to a COVID-19 vaccination center in downtown Baltimore, Maryland
A sign on a street directs people to a COVID-19 vaccination center in downtown Baltimore, Maryland (AN/R. Powers)

WASHINGTON (AN) — With colder weather arriving across much of the Northern Hemisphere and COVID-era travel and social-gathering restrictions fading into memory, public health officials warn the upcoming influenza season could pack a wallop.

Health officials look south of the equator, where the flu season is usually from May to October, for a predictor of what to expect in the Northern Hemisphere. In Australia and New Zealand flu began to appear earlier this year with the number of cases up and more people hospitalized.

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