During flu season, there is a greater chance for babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) to get very sick if exposed to the flu or other viruses. That’s why The University of Kansas Hospital is limiting visitors during peak times of the 2019-20 flu season. Currently, visitors under age 12 are not permitted to visit the NICU. It’s a good precaution for people of all ages who have weakened and/or are immunocompromised. Frequent handwashing, hand sanitizer, coughing into your elbow and getting a flu shot are key things you can do to avoid catching or spreading the flu. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment influenza-like surveillance reporting shows flu is on the rise across Kansas with 75% of reported cases contributed to influenza virus type A-H1. To date, Missouri and Kansas have both had people die of the flu or from complications related to the flu this season including a 9-year-old girl from Hiawatha. It is not too late to get a flu shot.