In a weekly report released by the Columbia/Boone County Public Health and Human Services, a 3,175% increase in flu cases was recorded from the beginning of December to February.
Week 48 (Nov. 29 through Dec. 5, 2025) had a total of 16 cases of Influenza A and B, while week 7 (Feb. 15 through Feb. 21, 2026) – which is the most updated data released by Boone County – had a total of 508 cases of Influenza A and B. From the beginning of January to February, Boone County’s case counts more than doubled.
While the flu can be contracted at any time of year, flu season, which generally runs from December to February, is the most active period of time for flu cases, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In its 2024-2025 Flu Season Report, the county reported that individuals in the 15-24 age group experienced the highest concentration of flu cases, a category many University of Missouri students fall into.
Liliana Hernandez-Wolas, a first-year Mizzou student who lives in a on-campus dorm, contracted the flu earlier this month. In early February, she began to notice common flu symptoms, such as a coughand cold sweats.
“At home, you’re not surrounded by a lot of people,” Hernandez-Wolas said. “I mean, yeah, we still went to school, but we didn’t share, like communal spaces, like a bathroom, or I didn’t share a room with two other people, where we’re constantly coughing, like in the air, or like when we’re sleeping, or we can’t cover our mouths, even touching, like the elevator buttons or door handles.”
After visiting the MU Student Health Center, Hernandez-Wolas was told she had Influenza A, one of the two types of flu variants tracked by Boone County and the CDC. Mizzou Student Health and Well-Being recommends staying home and limiting contact with others when sick. However, classes continue regardless.
“Some classes did not accommodate very well, which were the graduation requirement classes, like my political science class,” Hernandez-Wolas said. “I am missing a lot of points because I was sick, and the teacher ended up getting sick too. So I’m like, let’s have a little empathy for me. Other classes, they’ve definitely accommodated it well, but I had to, like, teach myself most of the stuff.”
The CDC reports that the flu can include a variety of different symptoms. Common avoidance mechanisms may include avoiding close contact with others, self-quarantining if sick, opening windows and using air purifiers to receive cleaner air and using proper hygiene techniques such as washing hands and avoiding touching the face.
MU Health Care administers flu vaccines at various locations. The vaccine is free to all Mizzou students and is covered by the student health fee. The Student Health Center, located at 909 Hitt St., is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesdays.
