CDC posted FluView for the week ending October 17, 2026, on October 23. That week, 2.2% of patient visits reported through ILINet were influenza-like illness. The national baseline for this visit share is 2.9%. The change from the previous week was at most 0.1 percentage points. In the laboratory section of the same report, 5.7% of clinical specimens tested positive for influenza virus. The 2.2% and the 2.9% use visits. The 5.7% uses specimens.
The 2.2% is a visit share under a 2.9% baseline
ILINet counts outpatient and emergency department visits with fever plus cough or a sore throat. Week 41's national figure is 2.2%, and it stayed within 0.1 percentage points of week 40. The baseline printed for that visit share is 2.9%, so 2.2% sits under the baseline.
CDC notes that several respiratory viruses are circulating in the same week, and the share of these visits that comes from influenza virus differs by place. The visit percentage and the laboratory percentage are printed in different sections of the report.
The 5.7% counts specimens
Clinical laboratories tested 51,490 specimens in week 41. Positive specimens numbered 2,918, which is 5.7%. Of those positives, 2,857 were influenza A, 97.9%, and 61 were influenza B, 2.1%.
| Figure | Week 41 | Denominator |
|---|---|---|
| 2.2% | ILI visits in ILINet | Patient visits reported to the network |
| 2.9% | National baseline | The same ILI visit share |
| 5.7% | Specimens positive for influenza virus | 2,918 of 51,490 clinical laboratory specimens |
The visit row sits under its baseline. The specimen row is 5.7% of the tests. FluView prints those percentages on separate lines.
Source
- CDC, October 23, 2026, Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report, Week 41, ending October 17, 2026, FluView