Alaska urges flu shots now as influenza activity climbs

Flu is already picking up in Alaska, and state health officials say the next few weeks are the window to get vaccinated before it peaks, which last season happened around the turn of the year.

The urgency has some numbers behind it. Alaska recorded 36 flu deaths last season, more than in any of the three years before it. And Alaskans get the shot at less than half the national rate: 22.7 percent of adults here, against 46.5 percent nationally.

The state recommends the vaccine for everyone 6 months and older without a medical reason to skip it. Children between 6 months and 8 years who have never been vaccinated, or who have had only one dose, need two this season, the first as soon as it's available and the second at least four weeks later. This year's vaccine was updated to better match the strains now circulating.

The people most at risk of getting seriously ill are young children, adults over 50, pregnant women, people with chronic conditions or weakened immune systems, nursing home residents, and Alaska Native and American Indian people.