Around 1,000 minors were hospitalized last Wednesday in the United States as a result of coronavirus, a record number of daily admissions for child patients that had never been achieved before since the beginning of the pandemic.
Data from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS for its acronym in English) have revealed that 951 minors were hospitalized after almost tripling the number of child admissions in the last two weeks as a result of the omicron variant.
The previous record for child admissions was reached during the peak of the wave caused by the delta variant, in the summer of 2021, when almost 400 minors were hospitalized in one day. Today’s date, more than 3,100 minors are hospitalized in the United States as a result of COVID-19.
According to the United States Academy of Pediatrics, as of December 29, 2021, 6.5 million children of 5 to 11 years of age had received at least one dose of the vaccines, which is 23% of the total. In adolescents between 12 and 17 years of age, the number of partially vaccinated was 15.6 million, 62% of the total. Those who have received the complete guideline is 13.1 million, 53%. About 9.5 million children between the ages of 12 and 17 have not received any doses of the vaccines.
In the United States, the child population, those under 18 years of age, is estimated at 72.8 million people, 22% of the country’s population. The increase in hospitalizations among the child and adolescent population coincides with the return of students to classrooms after Christmas holidays.
In recent days, US authorities have taken steps to try to increase protection for minors against the pandemic. On Monday, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of a booster dose of Pfizer’s vaccine for children between the ages of 12 and 15.
In addition, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), an independent body that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), recommended that the booster dose of the Pfizer vaccine is given to minors 12 to 17 years of age. Around 5 million adolescents are candidates, having completed the minimum period of five months since they received the complete guideline.
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
