Americans are clearly more concerned about the severity of the flu season this year.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 56% of adults think this year’s flu season will be worse than last year’s, more than double the level of concern a year ago. Just seven percent (7%) say it will be better, while 24% expect it to be about the same.

Last year at this time, only 22% thought the flu season would be worse than the year before, and 20% said it would be better. Thirty-six percent (36%) predicted it would be about the same.

Married Americans and those with children living with them are more likely to think the flu season will be worse than unmarrieds and those without children in the home. Sixty-eight percent (68%) of those ages 18 to 29 say the flu season will be worse this year, compared to 43% of those 65 and older.

Despite this jump in concern about the flu season, the number of Americans who plan to get a flu shot is virtually unchanged from October 2008. Only 53% intend to get a shot this year even with the highly-publicized outbreak of swine flu.

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Twenty-six percent (26%) of Americans believe the doctors in their community are adequately prepared to handle a flu epidemic, down 11 points from May. Thirty-two percent (32%) do not think local doctors are prepared, and 42% are not sure.

Undoubtedly feeding the level of concern is the slew of news reports about swine flu. Sixty-two percent (62%) of adults say they personally are at least somewhat concerned about the threat of swine flu, including 20% who are very concerned.

Thirty-six percent (36%) are less concerned, but only six percent (6%) are not at all concerned.

Women are more concerned about the threat of swine flu than men.

Feelings about swine flu have fluctuated since news of the disease became widespread in the spring. Sixty-five percent (65%) were concerned in April, but that dropped to 47% by early June.

By the end of July, however, 58% of Americans were at least somewhat concerned that swine flu would become a more serious problem in the fall with the arrival of the traditional flu season.

Throughout the surveys though, the number of those who are very concerned about swine flu has changed very little.

Now 64% are at least somewhat confident that their local schools are making every effort to prevent the spread of swine flu this year. Twenty-seven percent (27%) are very confident. Just 23% are not very or not at all confident in their local schools’ efforts to prevent swine flu.

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