Preschool-age child dies from flu in Virginia

The Virginia Department of Health on Thursday reported the state’s first pediatric flu death of the season.

The victim was as old as 4. State health officials said they were withholding all other information about the child to “protect the family’s privacy.”

The death occurred in the department’s region that consists of Virginia’s Eastern Shore, the Hampton Roads area and the localities bordering the Chesapeake Bay.

“We at the Virginia Department of Health are broken-hearted and extend our sympathies to the family of this child during this difficult time,” the Virginia health commissioner, Dr. Karen Shelton, said in a statement.

The Health Department says the level of respiratory illnesses affecting the state is moderate. During the week that ended last Saturday, flu accounted for 4,676 visits to emergency departments in hospitals, 5.4% of all ER visits statewide.

The department recommends annual flu vaccination for people 6 months and older. Less than 30% of Virginia residents eligible for flu vaccines have gotten one during the 2025-26 flu season, state health officials said.