♪ >> Flu cases are up and the number of people getting flu vaccines is down.

Last week we spoke to Doctor Steven Stack, Kentucky's commissioner for public health about the flu.

More in tonight's look at medical news >> we are having the worst influenza season.

The United States and 15 or 16 years, at least.

So this means are far more people with influenza United States that we've had in a very long time.

With that comes more people end up in the hospital with that comes more deaths.

A lot of these things are hard to speculate exactly what has caused this year to be worse than another year, sometimes because the flu mutates frequently.

So this year, the strains that are in circulation for whatever reason are either more easily transmitted.

>> Or more.

>> Able to cause harm because there's been an increase in the number of individuals who have had serious brain related injury related to this particular influenza.

In addition to the fact that this particular year just may be able to spread better.

We also have a very, very low uptake for the flu vaccine this year.

Now, let's be clear, though, the influenza vaccine effectiveness does vary from year to year.

That's long been known.

It is unclear if you will always benefit is fully issue would like from the influenza vaccine.

But what is absolutely not unclear what is absolutely proven over time is when we immunize hit scale across the large population, we profoundly decrease the number of people who get serious illness or end up in the hospital were who die from the disease.

So winter immunization rates are very low.

We end up having more people in the hospital and more people who died.

That is proven.

So even though the vaccine varies in its overall effectiveness from one year to the next its overall effectiveness is really.

Positive.

An impact over the whole population.

And you never know whether you're going to be that patient who luckily benefited or luckily did not.

Unfortunately, Kentucky, we've already announced at least 2 pediatric deaths, 2 children who have died from influenza.

And so it's just it's a real sadness to me.

That misinformation and confusion.

His cause people to make decisions that they believe is in the best interest of their child.

But which medical science has clearly shown.

It's not.