States sound the alarm on Covid-19 epidemics in school-aged children

There have been over 1.5 million cases of Covid-19 among children and adolescents reported in the Americas over the past year.

In the United States, some state officials are sounding the alarm bells:

About 60% of outbreaks in Georgia occur in schools

In the past 60 days, around 60% of all Covid-19s in Georgia have occurred in K-12 schools – around seven times as many, state epidemiologist Dr Cherie Drenzek said on Tuesday during a meeting of the board of directors of the Ministry of Public Health.

“The most important epidemiological trend that we have seen, which was very different from previous waves of this pandemic, is the huge impact that we have seen on school-aged children,” she said.

This impact cuts across all surveillance indicators, including new cases, hospitalizations and deaths, according to Drenzek.

Georgia currently has an average of nearly 7,000 new cases every day – about ten times more than in July, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Georgia ranks low in the United States in terms of vaccination rates, with 43% fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Ohio governor’s appeal to school districts

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association this week urged school principals to demand masks for staff and students.

“If we want our schools to stay open, the best way to do it is for those 12 and over to get vaccinated,” he said in a virtual meeting with superintendents. “But because the under 12s are still too young to be vaccinated, we need the students who come to school to wear a mask until we get over that.”

Just over 54% of students in public schools across the state have a mask requirement.

“Reasonable people can disagree on a lot of things, but we can all agree that we need to keep our kids in class so they don’t fall behind and their parents can go to work and not take time off to supervise. their kids at home, ”DeWine said.

As of August 15, there have been 29,823 children – aged 5 to 17 – with confirmed or probable cases of Covid-19 in the state, according to a statement from the governor’s office.

Over the past week, Ohio saw a 44% increase in cases among school-aged children, compared to a 17% jump in the rest of the population.

The release said school districts where masks are optional saw a 54% increase in cases week-over-week, up from a peak of 34% in districts with mask requirements.

“It’s a perfect storm, and it’s impacting kids like never before,” said Nick Lashutka, president and CEO of the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association.

10 times more cases among Pennsylvania schoolchildren this year

Pennsylvania has 10 times more cases of Covid-19 in school-aged children than at the same time last year – when the state was doing distance learning, according to Alison Beam, the secretary of Acting health.

Between September 4 and September 10 of last year, there were 574 cases of Covid-19 in children aged 5 to 18 in Pennsylvania, according to the Department of Health.

During the same period in 2021, there were 5,371 cases in the same age group.

Status of a vaccine for children

“If you look at the studies that we (National Institutes of Health) are doing in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies, there will be enough data to apply for emergency use authorization both by Pfizer, later by Moderna. “, Fauci told CNN.

“I think both – with Pfizer first – will most likely be able to have a situation where we can immunize children,” he added. “If the FDA deems the data sufficient, we could do it by the fall.”

Reopening of schools without proper masks likely contributed to the increase in cases among children, according to Fauci.

“When you contract a highly transmissible virus that is circulating in the community, you will see many more infected children,” he said.

But mask warrants in schools remain controversial.

In New York City, two Long Island public school districts are suing the state governor and health commissioner over a statewide school mask mandate before the school year.