You might have to quarantine relatives this Christmas, and not for their political remarks.

Clark County and the state of Washington are pretty sick. According to Clark County Public Health’s weekly influenza report, the county recorded 38.4 percent flu positivity for Dec. 8 through Dec. 14. The previous week’s positivity was at 32.3 percent.

Cowlitz County tracked just under 24 percent positivity for Dec. 8 through 14, and Washington had just more than 15 percent positivity for Dec. 1 through 7, the latest data available. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported national flu positivity at 11.3 percent.

“Flu season is a busy time,” said Andrew Root, the medical director for infection prevention for PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center.

Disha Gandara, an infection prevention manager with PeaceHealth, said there isn’t a surefire explanation for why Washington and Clark County are so sick with the flu. It could just be that the peak of the season has arrived earlier this year. The positivity rate is closely mimicking the same trends as 2016-17 and 2017-18, according to Public Health data, so while the season is stronger earlier than usual, it’s not out of the ordinary at this point.

Reporting from the Seattle Times showed that 3.2 percent of doctor visits nationwide were for flulike illnesses the first week of December, according to CDC statistics. The national baseline for the previous three flu seasons is 2.4 percent.