re: wiping out the flu - not so sure about that one
“The final data on flu season 2019/2020 was released by the CDC in April....
PIC Mortality: 12.1% up from 7.2% - (pneumonia/influenza/covid) (article states majority from CCPVirus but doesn’t break it out)
hospitalization rate: 0.7 per 100,000 population
“Between October 1, 2019 and April 4, 2020, the flu resulted in:
39 to 56 million illnesses
410,000 to 740,000 hospitalizations
24,000 to 62,000 deaths
195 pediatric deaths (one in 2021)
https://hive.rochesterregional.org/2020/01/Flu-season-2020
>>410,000 to 740,000 hospitalizations
Wild assed guess. Just as they did with H1N1. They stopped counting in 2009 and started guessing all the way through 2010.
They then settled on the middle number between their high estimate and low estimate.