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Flu Season Kicks Off In Missouri

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Kansas City, MO – The flu season is officially underway in Missouri. KCUR's Elana Gordon reports.

The Missouri Department of Health has reported its first confirmed cases of influenza for the current flu season. The department's already received nearly 500 reports of flu from throughout the state, but the two recent ones in Eastern Missouri, mark the state's first cases confirmed by lab tests.

Health officials say flu season in Missouri usually doesn't peak until later in the winter, and that it's not too late to get a flu shot. They also say regular hand washing, covering coughs and sneezes, and staying home when feeling ill can help people protect themselves from the flu.

Funding for health care coverage on KCUR has been provided by the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City.

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