Over 243,000 kids test positive in 1 week, nearly setting new record
More than 243,000 children tested positive for COVID-19 last week, marking the second-highest week ever for pediatric cases, according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association.
Last week, children accounted for 28.9% of the cases. Children make up 22.2% of the population.
Across the U.S., approximately 2,200 kids are in hospitals for COVID-19. Texas currently leads the country with 377 children receiving care, followed by Ohio with 258 children and Florida with 168 children.
Cases among kids rose "exponentially" this summer, the organizations wrote, and in the last month alone, the U.S. has reported more than 1 million pediatric cases.
More than 1.2 million children have tested positive since they returned to classrooms in late July.
Severe illness due to COVID-19 remains "uncommon" among children, the two organizations wrote in the report. The AAP and CHA, however, 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
