A fifth person has died of swine flu in Maryland, state health officials said Friday.
The person was an adult from the Washington suburbs who had an underlying medical condition, officials said. As with other deaths from the H1N1 virus, officials would not release the person's name, gender or hometown. Since the outbreak this spring, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported 436 deaths and 6,506 hospitalizations nationwide stemming from the virus. The agency has stopped keeping track of cases that don't result in deaths or hospital stays as the pandemic continues to spread.
Also Friday, CDC advised that most schools should stay open even if outbreaks ramp up this fall. The decision to close schools should be made by local officials, who should weigh the safety risks with the possibility of disrupting education and creating logistical problems for families, the agency said in its guidance to school districts. People who become sick should stay home until their fevers have been gone for at least 24 hours. Tthe CDC encouraged good hygiene such as frequent hand washing to stem the spread of the virus.
