MORENO VALLEY - (INT) – The approaching flu season may be getting a head start.

As residents cope with the coronavirus pandemic now in its 8th month, Riverside County health officials are reporting the first death of the 2020-21 flu season. A man in his 80s from the San Jacinto Valley has died at the Riverside University Health System-Medical Center in Moreno Valley.

Pharmacies and medical centers have just begun offering the annual flu vaccine which is becoming more widely available.

Riverside County public health officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser is urging residents to get their flu shot before the end of October. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend all persons 6 months of age and older receive a flu vaccination each year. Children 8 years old and younger who haven’t received at least two flu shots in prior seasons may need two shots to be fully protected.

The coronavirus pandemic has claimed more than 1,746 lives in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. There have been more than 101,551 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Inland Empire.

Story Date: October 7, 2020