Coronavirus NY: How many kids are hospitalized with Covid?

Coronavirus Update for New York

Wednesday, August 18, 2021

How many kids are hospitalized with COVID?

Pediatric COVID-19 related hospital admissions are rising in the Tri-State. Across the country, they have equaled their highest point of the pandemic.

NEW YORK (WABC) -- As COVID-19 infections surge across the country, health officials are again warning of the concerning uptick in pediatric cases and hospitalizations across the country.

In a weekly report released on Monday, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children's Hospital Association (CHA) found that more than 121,000 new child COVID-19 cases were reported last week, a continued "substantial" increase from weeks prior.

Since the onset of the pandemic, over 4.41 million children have tested positive for COVID-19, and last week, children represented 18% of all reported COVID-19 cases

In a similar trend, pediatric COVID-19 related hospital admissions in the U.S. are now equal to their highest point of the pandemic.

The rate of pediatric (0-17) hospital admissions per 100,000 people, is 4.6 times higher than it was just five weeks ago.

At this time, severe illness due to COVID-19 remains "uncommon" among children, the two organizations wrote in the report.

In the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut area, the latest data from White House COVID-19 Team shows hospitalizations among people under age 17 have been on the increase since mid-July.

As of August 7, they had returned to levels not seen since May, but still below the peaks in April and last September.