Illinois sees its worst flu season in recent years as vaccine skepticism
grows
[January 28, 2026]
By Olivia Ardito and Medill Illinois News Bureau
CHICAGO — Flu cases are increasing rapidly in Illinois as the state sees
its worst flu season in more than 15 years.
At least 100 people have died from the flu this season in Illinois, with
77 of those deaths occurring this month alone, according to the Illinois
Department of Public Health. Children and the elderly have been the
most-affected age groups. So far, there have been three pediatric
fatalities in Illinois this flu season, IDPH reports.
IDPH reported this month that flu activity in the state has climbed to
“very high,” the most severe of five categories of respiratory illness,
as defined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The
2009-10 season was the last time the state reached such high numbers of
cases.
The public health department reported that for the week of Jan. 11-17,
on average, 3% of all emergency department visits and 2.1% of hospital
admissions were for the flu. The IDPH does not report a total number of
cases. Additionally, 16.9% of flu tests, or 2,963 tests, done in a lab
were positive for the flu. There were also 414 ICU admissions across the
state for the flu.
The height of flu season is typically from early to mid-February.
According to the IDPH, flu outbreaks are specifically growing in West
Chicago, Bellwood, Rockford, Metro East, Peoria and Champaign.
Additionally, the CDC reports that at least 230,000 people have been
hospitalized for the flu nationwide, and the numbers continue to rise.
Dr. Taylor Heald-Sargent, an associate professor at Northwestern
University who specializes in the cold and flu, vaccines, and pediatric
illnesses, said one reason Illinois is having such a severe flu season
is because fewer people are getting vaccinated against the flu.
“We’ve definitely seen just overall vaccination rates decreasing for
years,” Heald-Sargent said. “We just keep trying to remind people that
vaccines are safe and effective, and they’ve been well studied. And if
you look back over the past century and a half, some of the biggest
gains in modern medicine have been because of vaccines.”
Two significant reasons people distrust the flu vaccine are that they
may experience flu symptoms after receiving it, and sometimes people
still get the flu after receiving the shot, according to Heald-Sargent.
Another explanation for these feelings of distrust could be that people
often forget that the goal of the flu vaccine is to prevent
hospitalization, not to build complete and total immunity from the
disease.
Vaccines have become a political target instead of being solely a
medical issue. Political conversations about vaccines became popularized
by a study published by Andrew Wakefield in 1998 that connected the MMR
vaccine to autism in children. This study has been proven to be false
and has since been retracted from publication. Recently, vaccines have
reentered the political zeitgeist due to U.S. Secretary of Health and
Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s policies.
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Getting a vaccine against the flu is still the best way to guard
against the illness, health officials say. (Medill Illinois News
Bureau by Sam Freeman)
A significant portion of Kennedy’s agenda has involved a large-scale
overhaul and change to vaccine schedules and standards. Kennedy has said
considers himself a long-time vaccine skeptic and hopes to restore
public trust in vaccines through his changes. The most notable change so
far has been the overhaul of the recommended vaccine schedule for
children. Previously, federal standards recommended 18 vaccines for
children, including the COVID-19 vaccine. The new standard cuts the
recommended number of vaccines to 11.
However, Illinois state legislators recently responded to these changes
by passing House Bill 767, which was signed into law in early December.
The bill allows Illinois to issue state-specific standards. State Sen.
Dave Koehler, D-Peoria, a sponsor of the bill, said the changes look
very similar to the standards Illinois had before Kennedy took office
and initiated his new protocol.
“Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made a mockery of all that DHS should stand
for,” Koehler said. “When the federal government fails, we as a state
have to fill in the gaps and make sure that people have the right kind
of information. We show that government actually cares and wants to
provide them scientifically sound information.”
Koehler advised Illinoisans not to turn to the internet or to the
federal government, but to listen to one’s own trusted doctor for
medical advice.
“(House Bill 767) was the governor and the legislature’s attempt to say,
‘Look, we need to have the professionals, the doctors, the people who
actually understand this stuff provide the public with information that
is sound and that people want,’” Koehler said.
To handle such rapidly spreading diseases like the flu, physicians like
Heald-Sargent suggest taking as many precautions as possible: Avoid
large crowds, stay home when sick, wash your hands well, and talk to
your doctor if you get a virus.
“Once you get a virus, while there are antiviral medications … they’re
not as great as boosting up your immune system ahead of time through
giving your immune system practice, and that is what a vaccine is — your
immune system getting some training on how to respond,” Heald-Sargent
said.
Olivia Ardito is a graduate student in journalism
with Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media
and Integrated Marketing Communications, and is a fellow in its
Medill Illinois News Bureau working in partnership with Capitol News
Illinois.
Capitol News Illinois is
a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state
government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is
funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R.
McCormick Foundation. |
