A record number of US children tested positive for coronavirus last week, report says
More than 61,000 children were diagnosed with the coronavirus in the U.S. last week — the highest number reported in one week since the pandemic began, according to a report from The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association.
Although children represent just 11% of all COVID-19 cases in states and territories that report cases by age, that percentage equals out to more than 853,000 infected kids.
“At this time, it appears that severe illness due to COVID-19 is rare among children,” the report reads. “However, there is an urgent need to collect more data on longer-term impacts on children, including ways the virus may harm the long-term physical health of infected children, as well as its emotional and mental health effects.”
Researchers use data on cases broken down by age from the health department websites of New York City, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and 49 states.
Ten states reported more than 25,000 child cases, while just two reported fewer than 1,000. The five states with the most cumulative number of infected children are California, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee and Arizona.
Between Oct. 22 and Oct. 29, a total of 61,447 new child COVID-19 cases were diagnosed. In October, nearly 200,000 children contracted the coronavirus.
The researchers note there are limitations to collecting data on age demographics in COVID-19 cases. For example, some states have changed their definition of a “child case” and New York doesn’t provide statewide child data, just New York City.
This week, the first person under 18 years old died from the coronavirus in Missouri, McClatchy News reported. The boy was in eighth grade.
