Respiratory Surveillance and Reports

Respiratory Surveillance and Reports

The New York State Department of Health collects, compiles, and analyzes information on New York State respiratory activity year-round and produces a weekly report during the respiratory season (October through the following May).

Current Influenza Season

Are you interested in contributing to New York State respiratory disease surveillance?

New York State actively enrolls health care providers and laboratories to participate in the Influenza-like Illness Surveillance Network (ILINet) and the National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NREVSS).

What is ILINet?

The New York State Influenza-like Illness Surveillance Network (ILINet) is an outpatient influenza surveillance program conducted in cooperation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Participating providers are part of a national network of more than 3,400 outpatient health care providers who conduct active disease monitoring and report data for people with influenza-like illness. ILINet is an essential component of influenza surveillance and is invaluable in monitoring the impact of influenza-like illness, as well as informing policy and resource allocation decisions.

What is Influenza-like illness (ILI)?

ILI is defined as a person having documented fever (≥100°F, 37.8°C) and cough, and/or sore throat.

Why does New York need ILINet providers?

ILINet is the only surveillance program that allows us to gauge respiratory infection in the outpatient setting. Data and specimens submitted by ILINet providers are critical for monitoring the course of influenza activity at the local, state, and national levels. Nationally, CDC uses the data submitted to the ILINet program as its primary source for national outpatient influenza surveillance.

ILINet data, in combination with other influenza surveillance data, are used to guide and develop prevention and control activities, vaccine strain selection, patient care guidance, and relevant informational health alerts regarding new or novel subtypes or drug-resistant influenza strains.

What data do ILI providers collect?

Each week, providers report by age group (0-4 years, 5-24 years, 25-49 years, 50-64 years, and >64 years) the following:

  • Total number of patients with ILI
  • Total number of patients seen for any reason

Data is uploaded through a password protected CDC platform.

Providers also contribute to NYS virologic surveillance through the submission of patient specimens to the NYS Wadsworth Center, Virology Lab for respiratory viral testing. The testing supplies and shipping expenses are covered by the Department, free of charge.

Who can enroll?

Physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners of any specialty and in any type of practice are eligible to be ILINet providers. These include emergency medicine, family practice, infectious disease, internal medicine, obstetrics/gynecology, pediatrics, college/university health centers, and urgent care.

Practice settings that are not eligible are elementary, middle, or high school health centers, and any type of institutional setting such as nursing homes and prisons.

How can I sign up?

To contribute to the NY and US surveillance programs, please contact us at ILINYS@health.ny.gov.

How can I get more information?

Contact the Bureau of Communicable Disease Control Flu Surveillance Program at 518-473-4439 or ILINYS@health.ny.gov

What is NREVSS?

The National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NREVSS) is a voluntary national laboratory-based surveillance program consisting of more than 370 clinical and public health laboratories. Data submitted by clinical and public health laboratories help monitor seasonal trends for the following respiratory and enteric pathogens:

  • Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)
  • Human parainfluenza viruses (HPIV)
  • Human metapneumovirus (HMPV)
  • Respiratory adenovirus
  • Human coronavirus
  • Rotavirus
  • Norovirus
  • Rhinovirus/Enterovirus
  • Influenza
  • Parainfluenza
  • Norovirus

What do NREVSS labs report?

NREVSS laboratories report the following weekly by midday on Tuesdays:

  • Total number of tests performed
  • Test types (e.g., virus antigen, PCR, culture), and
  • Number of positive tests

    • Why volunteer to participate in NREVSS?

    Data submitted by NREVSS laboratories play an important role in public health surveillance both nationally and in NY. The data play a critical role in identifying the patterns of the viruses, which will highlight trends and assist in monitoring viral epidemics.

    Enrolled labs can submit positive influenza specimens to the Wadsworth Center virology lab to be subtyped. Wadsworth Center will attempt to subtype, or trace the lineage of submitted specimens, which could help detect novel, avian, and variant flu strains. These specimens will assist with determining the influenza strains to be included in the following season's flu vaccine. Wadsworth testing can also monitor for antiviral drug-resistant strains.

    How can I enroll?

    If you would like to help us monitor viral diseases, better characterize temporal and spatial trends in virus activity, and help with the detection of novel, avian, and variant flu strains, contact the Bureau of Communicable Disease Control Flu Surveillance Program at 518-473-4439 or NREVSSNYS@health.ny.gov with the subject line "NREVSS Enrollment."