March. 05, 2017 -- Schools from Rhode Island to California have closed down for days this winter after students and teachers became ill with what is believed to be norovirus, public health officials say.
Norovirus, incorrectly called the "stomach flu," is a short-term illness that's different from the flu. It strikes about 20 million people a year in the U.S., most commonly in the winter, and causes a few days of misery, with diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.
