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Dozens of children under 12 have tested positive for COVID-19 at Camp Pontiac as COVID cases increase across country
An overnight camp in upstate New York, which can accommodate up to 550 participants and 275 staff, reported that 31 of their campers too young to receive the vaccine tested positive for the coronavirus this week. The outbreak is part of an alarming trend of an upsurge in COVID cases in the United States, which many pin on the Delta variant, the new Lambda variant, and vaccination rates too low to provide herd immunity.
The COVID epidemic started in the girls’ dormitories, and as soon as nurses saw campers showing symptoms of COVID-19, they decided to get tested. On July 17, a test came back positive and five days later, on Thursday July 22, a total of 31 campers were confirmed to have contracted the virus.
All of the children who tested positive were under 12 years of age and therefore were not vaccinated.
According to the camp, about half of the young participants are under the age of 12 and are not eligible for the vaccine. The other half of the camper population is over 12, and Camp Pontiac reported that only four came to camp unvaccinated. Of the 275 staff members, only three were unvaccinated. It only took seven unvaxxed people – out of an approximate total of 875 campers and staff – to trigger this COVID outbreak. None of the vaccinated campers at the camp have yet tested positive for the virus.
Still, the camp chose not to close and instead quarantined the 31 children who tested positive along with around 80 other people in close contact with them. Fewer than 10 of these isolated campers come from out of state. Camp Pontiac informed camper families of the outbreak with a letter explaining that the camp “has decided to test all unvaccinated campers even if the CDC and the Department of Health do not require it.”
The good news is that it appears that not all infected children experience extreme cases of COVID and should make a full recovery.
It is still unclear if (and when) children under 12 in the United States will be eligible for the vaccination. President Joe Biden believes the Food and Drug Administration will begin authorizing vaccinations for children under the age of 12 “soon” and has suggested that students under the age of 12 may be required to wear face masks from school to school. ‘fall.
“We regard the health and well-being of our camp community as our number one priority,” the letter continued. “Every camper is of course welcome after the quarantine period ends and we will be happy to return or reimburse the tuition on a pro rata basis. “
New York has an average vaccination rate slightly above the national average, with about 62% of residents having received a dose and about 56% of its citizens fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The average vaccination rate in the United States currently hovers around 49% with full vaccination.
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