The severity of the current flu season has prompted hospital systems like UW Health to have stricter enforcement of its visitor rules, according to an article on the NPR website.
UW Health will be limiting visitor access to its clinics and hospitals throughout the remainder of the flu season. Flu activity in the U.S. has increased for 10 weeks in a row by the beginning of February, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Some healthcare facilities are handing masks to sick visitors, others are sending out letters warning people of the risk, and some administrations are asking visitors if they’re sick when they sign in.
In the rare case UW Health allows a visitor with flu-like symptoms to visit a patient, they’ll have to follow several rules, not limited to wearing a face make, the article said.
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