The Flu does not kill 36,000 — 80,000 Americans a year
It doesn’t even kill 36,000 Americans a year
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been inflating flu deaths for more than a decade now. The CDC’s own data dismisses their claim that Influenza kills 36,000–80k Americans every year.
As you can see in the image (or on page 31 of the linked CDC document), the CDC has been adding all pneumonia deaths into the flu statistic and calling them both “flu deaths.”
Of the 55,672 alleged Influenza & Pneumonia deaths reported, only 6,515 of them were from the flu. The problem? The most common cause of pneumonia is bacterial, not viral, and there are at least a dozen viruses that can cause viral pneumonia, the flu being only one of them.
This is the same scenario with each year. Here’s the report from 2017 (page 35):
̶D̶o̶e̶s̶ ̶a̶n̶y̶o̶n̶e̶ ̶e̶l̶s̶e̶ ̶f̶i̶n̶d̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶s̶t̶r̶a̶n̶g̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶e̶x̶a̶c̶t̶ ̶s̶a̶m̶e̶ ̶n̶u̶m̶b̶e̶r̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶d̶e̶a̶t̶h̶s̶ ̶w̶e̶r̶e̶ ̶c̶o̶u̶n̶t̶e̶d̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶”̶I̶n̶f̶l̶u̶e̶n̶z̶a̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶p̶n̶e̶u̶m̶o̶n̶i̶a̶”̶ ̶i̶n̶ ̶2̶0̶1̶9̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶2̶0̶1̶7̶?̶ (it has been pointed out that the report listed in the 2019 NVS report was actually from 2017 — good catch. That said, it doesn’t detract from the following information:)
It isn’t all that strange because the CDC does not record or report actual flu deaths (other than pediatric flu deaths). Instead, they use a formula to “estimate” the number of flu deaths in a year. That’s from the CDC (par 10):
The cumulative burden of influenza is an estimate of the number of people who have been sick, seen a healthcare provider, been hospitalized, or died as a result of influenza since October 01, 2018. CDC does not know the exact number of people who have been sick and affected by influenza because influenza is not a reportable disease in most areas of the United States. (emphasis added)
That’s why the numbers for 2019 & 2017 are exactly the same: the numbers are not based on actual deaths. The hospitalizations aren’t even based on actual hospitalizations because “influenza is not a reportable disease in most areas of the United States.” See their model here.
And you’ll notice in the link above (the model), the CDC admits this: “No influenza-associated pediatric deaths occurring during the 2020–21 season have been reported to CDC.”
So, the flu has allegedly killed between 36,000 & 80,000 Americans every year — for years — yet the CDC, when they break down Influenza & Pneumonia deaths, report just over 6k estimated “flu” deaths.
So, all of these Americans die from the flu while not a single death has been reported for pediatric cases this season, which ARE reportable and based on actual flu deaths/hospitalizations.
That’s because very few children die from the flu. You can see this in the CDC chart below:
As you can see, when actual numbers are reported (pediatric cases), flu deaths do not amount to 200 child deaths in a year, and none have been reported at all for 2020–21.
The reason is simple: flu does not kill tens of thousands of Americans per year. That doesn’t seem to stop them from telling you how effective this year’s flu shot has been, though.
It certainly won’t stop them from begging EVERYONE to get a flu shot, especially children and elderly people.
Oh, and before I forget — Make sure you get your flu shot!
