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HEALTH

The Claim

Approximately 90% of pediatric influenza deaths in the United States during the 2025-2026 flu season occurred among unvaccinated children.

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The Short Version

The claim overstates the CDC's own reported figure for the 2025-2026 flu season by a meaningful margin. CDC's most current weekly surveillance data (April 2026) consistently reports that approximately 85% — not 90% — of pediatric influenza deaths occurred among unvaccinated children. The ~90% figure appears to be drawn from the prior 2024-2025 season or an early-season snapshot that was later revised downward. While the directional point — that unvaccinated children account for the overwhelming majority of deaths — is accurate, the specific percentage claimed is not supported by current CDC data.

Caveats

  • The CDC's 2025-2026 in-season surveillance data reports approximately 85% of pediatric flu deaths occurred among unvaccinated children, not 90% as claimed — a 5-percentage-point discrepancy the CDC itself distinguishes.
  • The ~90% figure cited in some sources refers to the prior 2024-2025 flu season or to an early-season snapshot (February 2026) that was superseded by later data as more deaths were reported.
  • The CDC's percentage applies only to vaccine-eligible children with known vaccination status — children with unknown vaccination status are excluded from the calculation, a caveat the claim omits entirely.

The Receipts

  1. Influenza-associated Pediatric Mortality - CDC

    CDC

  2. 2025–2026 Flu Season | Influenza (Flu) - CDC

    CDC

  3. Weekly US Influenza Surveillance Report: Key Updates for ... - CDC

    CDC

  4. Influenza-Associated Pediatric Deaths — United States, 2024 ... - CDC

    CDC MMWR

  5. Interim Estimates of 2025–26 Seasonal Influenza Vaccine ... - CDC

    CDC MMWR

  6. Virginia Health Officials Report the First Pediatric Flu Death of the ...

    Virginia Department of Health

  7. CDC reports 11 more pediatric flu deaths

    CIDRAP

  8. US flu season receding but still deadly, with 12 more child deaths

    CIDRAP

  9. Public Health Announces First Pediatric Influenza-Related Death of ...

    Riverside University Health System – Public Health

  10. Influenza Pediatric Deaths Last Flu Season United States

    Infectious Disease Special Edition

+ 3 more sources — see the full list on Lenz

Filed Under

2025-2026 US flu seasonUnited States

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