As the season for increased flu and other respiratory illnesses arrives, the Alexandria Health Department is providing guidance on vaccines and other recommendations for residents.
Flu season begins in October and continues until May, although activity may peak in the winter months. Other respiratory illnesses such as COVID-19 and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) also circulate during the season.
After President Donald Trump issued an order seeking more spaced out childhood vaccinations, the Virginia Department of Health joined other medical experts in backing the existing childhood vaccination schedule.
President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order calling for revamped childhood vaccine recommendations that promote his long-held but discredited theory that childhood shots should be spaced out into separate medical visits.
Alexandria continues to outpace the state average for sexually transmitted infections, according to a new report.
The Alexandria Health Department’s 2024 Disease Investigation Report recorded 1,900 separate disease investigations in 2024, a 5% decrease from 2023. The department found that vaccine-preventable diseases increased fivefold with 41 cases in 2024, compared to eight reported cases in 2023; and that sexually transmitted infections decreased 2%, although gonorrhea and HIV cases have increased by 9% and 24%, respectively.
Maintaining high childhood vaccination rates is key to preventing measles outbreaks, state health experts say, as cases have seen an uptick in Northern Virginia and across the country this year.
In the first two months of 2026, Virginia has confirmed 10 cases of measles — double the total cases recorded last year — and nine of them have been in the northern region, with exposures reported in Alexandria, Fairfax County and surrounding areas.
The Alexandria Health Department is advising residents of another measles case, the seventh in the Northern Virginia region.
An adult who recently traveled abroad was diagnosed with measles after visiting a local grocery store and two Inova facilities, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
The Virginia Department of Health has confirmed the state’s first flu-related pediatric death this season, as public health officials across Virginia continue to monitor increased flu activity.
Health officials yesterday (Thursday) said a preschool-aged child — between newborn age and 4 years old — died from flu-related complications. The child was from Virginia’s Eastern Region, which largely covers the Tidewater and Eastern Shore areas. The health department is not releasing additional information about the child to protect the family’s privacy.
With the 2025-2026 school year just a month away, the Alexandria Health Department is urging parents to get their children’s school-required vaccinations.
“Scheduling vaccine appointments early makes it easier to find an appointment that fits your schedule,” Alexandria Health Department Director Dr. David Rose said, “and vaccines protect our children from getting sick and being sidelined from school and activities later on.”
Alexandria’s Covid community-level has gone from “low” to “high” this month, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Low, medium or high Covid community levels are determined by data on hospitalizations and cases, according to the CDC. Each level comes with steps recommended by the federal agency that people and communities can take to protect themselves and others from potentially severe impacts of the virus.
Three more Alexandria residents have died of COVID-19 over the last two weeks, while an uptick in cases has slightly dipped.
There were 32 new cases reported on Dec. 28 (Wednesday) in Alexandria, and the Virginia Department of Health has not updated its figures over the last two days.
Covid cases are on the rise as Alexandria heads into the December holidays.
There were 69 reported cases today (Wednesday) in Alexandria, the largest amount of new cases in a single day in more than four months. The number of reported cases now stands at 43,429, and the seven-day average of new cases is 42.7.
Nine Alexandria residents died of COVID-19 over the last month, bringing the death toll from the virus to 210.
The number of cases is still declining, and the city’s Community Level remains low, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The seven-day average of new cases is now 10.7 — down from the mid-30s at around this time last month.
