I'm just going to go ahead here and state the obvious. The flu did not magically disappear and people with the flu are without any question being counted as counted as covid-19 cases.
Secondly it hasn't disappeared, if you read the article it says there were 600 flu deaths (in the US) last year, where previously there were 20,000+.
Finally, all it takes is a quick test to confirm whether it's influenza or coronavirus.
> people with the flu are without any question being counted as counted as covid-19 cases
I'm saying that is simply not possible - at least not in my country. We actually require a proper test for the presence of SARS-CoV 2 before they are diagnosed with covid.