COVID-19 updates: 345 children currently hospitalized with coronavirus in Texas

Doctors from Lee Health Facilities, a health care system in Florida that consists of four acute care hospitals and two specialty hospitals, are begging residents to get vaccinated as hospital beds remain unavailable.

Patients are currently waiting for beds in hallways and closets, doctors announced at a news conference Monday.

Lee Memorial Hospital in Fort Myers, Florida, admitted 92 COVID-19 patients on Sunday alone, and eight to 12 patients in the health system are dying every day, Dr. Larry Antonucci, CEO of Lee Health, told reporters, saying the deaths are “not necessary.”

"Our COVID rate in this county is three times what we’re seeing throughout the rest of the United States," Antonucci said.

Nearly 50% of people coming into the hospital system’s emergency department are seeking treatment for issues related to COVID-19, said Dr. Timothy Dougherty, medical director for emergency management.

"That number is insane," Dougherty said, adding that people in their 20s and 30s are dying as well. "No other disease demands these amounts of resources, including BiPAP and ventilators, and all that could be prevented with the vaccine."

The neonatal intensive units within the hospital system are "overflowing" as well, Dr. Stephanie Stoval, a pediatric infectious disease specialist said, adding that pregnant women who contract COVID-19 are more likely to go into labor early or have pregnancy complications.

"It’s never been this full before," Stoval said.

The hospital system is looking for additional spaces to expand treatment, Antonucci said.

-ABC News’ Cherise Rudy

As COVID-19 infections steadily increase across the country, the U.S. continues to see a concerning surge in pediatric cases just as children head back to the classroom for a new school year.

Just under 204,000 new child COVID-19 cases were reported last week, marking the second-highest week on record, according to a newly released weekly report that compiles state-by-state data on COVID-19 cases among children from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children’s Hospital Association (CHA).

After declining throughout the early summer, new child cases have increased "exponentially," the organizations said, with an over five-fold increase the past month, rising from about 38,000 cases the week ending July 22 -- a 427% increase in the weekly rate.

Since the onset of the pandemic, nearly 4.8 million children have tested positive for COVID-19. Last week, children represented 22.4% of all reported COVID-19 cases.

At this time, severe illness due to COVID-19 remains “uncommon” among children, the two organizations wrote in the report. According to the nearly two dozen states, which reported pediatric hospitalizations, 0.1% to 1.9% of all child COVID-19 cases resulted in hospitalization. ​Similarly, in states which reported virus-related deaths by age, 0.00%-0.03% of all child COVID-19 cases resulted in death.

However, the AAP and CHA warned that there is an urgent need to collect more data on the long-term consequences of the pandemic 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."

-ABC News' Arielle Mitropoulos

Authorities are warning of a fresh and specific increase in counterfeit COVID-19 vaccination cards on the online market, according to a new law enforcement bulletin obtained by ABC News.

A blank template imitating the CDC-issued COVID-19 vaccination record card has been circulating on various social media platforms, including an anti-vaccine Telegram channel, the internal notice says. 

These blank cards can be downloaded, printed and filled out in order to gain entry where proof of vaccination is required, and to "satisfy employer vaccine mandates," according to the notice.

This latest warning comes just as ABC News has reported exclusively that federal health officials are seeing an alarming rise in the demand for these fraudulent cards, which cyber experts and federal officials are are concerned is a burgeoning and rapidly evolving market.

The illicit niche industry for forged cards is hitting its stride just as new vaccine requirements are rapidly being implemented at the federal, state and local levels and in both the public and private sectors -- requiring proof of inoculation in order to work at a hospital, teach or attend school, work out at the gym, or eat inside a restaurant.

Despite new policies and FDA full approval of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine, some hesitant Americans still refuse to be vaccinated.

For enterprising fraudsters, the fresh demand presents a ripe opportunity. 

In this latest bulletin, social posts and law enforcement source information indicate that criminal actors in the Philadelphia area are "profiting from the production of these cards" and "selling the counterfeit cards through online and in-person sales."

"The PDF being shared on local Telegram channels offers limitless access to counterfeit vaccination cards," authorities warn. 

"The use of fraudulent cards may have a significant impact on public health, especially in compact and vulnerable communities like academic institutions and healthcare facilities," the bulletin warns, reminding those who profit from or use these fake cards may face prison time or hefty fines. 

-ABC News’ Aaron Katersky and Sasha Pezenik

The U.S. Department of Education has launched a civil rights investigation into five states that have barred indoor making mandates, alleging that the governors are creating an unsafe learning environment for students with disabilities at heightened risk of severe illness from COVID-19.

It’s an aggressive new legal tact from the Biden administration to challenge Republican governors who insist indoor mask mandates don’t work.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that schools are generally safe if students and staff universally wear masks. School districts that struggled with COVID-19 outbreaks this year – often sending thousands of kids home – typically did not require masks.

The investigation's focus is on Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah. The Education Department says it is not including Florida, Texas, Arkansas and Arizona at this time "because those states’ bans on universal indoor masking are not currently being enforced as a result of court orders or other state actions," federal documents state.

Read more here.

-ABC News’ Libby Cathey and Anne Flaherty