Hospitalisations surge for unvaccinated American children

Hospitalisations of children in the United States under five with COVID-19 have soared in recent weeks to their highest level since the pandemic began, according to government data on the only age group not yet eligible for the vaccine.

The worrisome trend in children too young to be vaccinated underscores the need for older children and adults to get their shots to help protect those around them, said Dr Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday.

ant spreading furiously around the country, the hospitalisation rate in these youngest children has surged to more than four in 100,000 children, up from 2.5 per 100,000.

The rate among children ages five to 17 is about one per 100,000, according to the CDC data, which is drawn from over 250 hospitals in 14 states.

Overall, “paediatric hospitalisations are at their highest rate compared to any prior point in the pandemic,” Walensky said.

She noted about 50 percent of children aged 12 to 18, and only 16 percent of those 5 to 11, are fully vaccinated.

The overall hospitalisation rate among children and teens is still lower than that of any other age group. And they account for less than five percent of average new daily hospital admissions, according to the CDC.

As of Tuesday, the average number of under-18 patients admitted to the hospital per day with COVID-19 was 766, double the figure reported just two weeks ago.

Agencies