Thanks to advances in treatment options, a COVID-19 diagnosis is no longer as scary as it once was, at least for most people.

Even though people may be getting better at fighting the illness, COVID-19 is still dangerous to vulnerable groups. And so besides protecting yourself, Rahn says having a vaccination is more than just personal. “Getting vaccinated protects yourself, and also protects the community and your family.”

As Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s Senate confirmation hearings begin, some local physicians worry the anti-vaccine activist may promote unfounded fears about vaccine safety. And the medical industry professionals warn eroding vaccination rates could fuel disease outbreaks.

Over 160,000 people this season have landed in the hospital from flu complications, CDC estimates. More than 6,600 have died. Here are the symptoms.

A pandemic is not inevitable, scientists say. But the outbreak has passed worrisome milestones in recent weeks, including cattle that may have been reinfected.

RSV is usually contagious for three to eight days. A patient also may be contagious a day or two before experiencing symptoms, the CDC said. Infants and those with weakened immune systems, however, can pass on RSV for up to four weeks or longer.

Kansas officials are battling an outbreak of tuberculosis. Are Michigan residents at risk of contracting the bacterial disease?

CDC testing data for the same period reveals that 6.6 percent of COVID-19 tests came back positive, with Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin seeing the highest test positivity rates of any region at 8.9 percent.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists New Hampshire as one of three states with high respiratory illness risk per its latest data, alongside New Jersey and Wisconsin. The latest numbers show COVID-19 and RSV viruses are also having their own smaller bumps at the same time as the flu.

Christiana Hospital in Stanton is overrun with cases of COVID-19, RSV, and other communicable diseases, creating long waits for ER patients.

Thousands of Oklahomans are sick with the flu. Symptoms of influenza include chills, fever, cough and body aches.

In the winter, it seems few are safe from some kind of illness — flu, COVID-19, norovirus, colds. But there are things you can do to protect yourself.