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News
Despite clear guidelines recommending antivirals for all hospitalized flu patients, roughly 1 in 7 adults never receive them in the ED. Treatment rates plummeted during the COVID-19 pandemic and still haven't fully bounced back. A new 10-year study is sounding the alarm on a persistent — and preventable — care gap.
A large retrospective study spanning nearly half a million hospitalized adults found that about 14% of flu patients never received antiviral therapy in the emergency department — despite guidelines recommending immediate treatment for all hospitalized cases. The study, published in The Journal of Emergency Medicine, analyzed Epic Cosmos electronic health records from 2016 to 2025 and found that treatment rates held steady between 85–91% pre-pandemic, then sharply dropped to 73% in 2021 before partially recovering to 85% by 2025.
The findings also point to geographic and demographic disparities. Patients in the South and West were less likely to receive antivirals compared to those in the Northeast, while older adults (ages 40–85) were more likely to be treated than younger adults. Nearly all treated patients received oseltamivir (Tamiflu).
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted flu care protocols, and those gaps haven't fully closed. With ED crowding on the rise, experts warn that urgent, targeted interventions are needed to ensure hospitalized flu patients get timely antiviral treatment — a proven standard of care.
