Explanation of why US is seeing a "very rapid" rise in child hospitalizations from Covid-19

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Tue, 2021-12-28 10:47 — mike kraft

US is seeing a "very rapid" rise in child hospitalizations from Covid-19, doctor says Dr. Adrienne Randolph, a pediatric critical care physician at Boston Children's Hospital, told CNN that children are "one of our most vulnerable populations" for infection from the more transmissible Omicron variant. By <a href="/profiles/helen-regan">Helen Regan</a>, Adam Renton, <a href="/profiles/aditi-sandal">Aditi Sangal</a>, Melissa Macaya and Mike Hayes, CNN CNN

Dr. Adrienne Randolph, a pediatric critical care physician at Boston Children's Hospital, told CNN that children are "one of our most vulnerable populations" for infection from the more transmissible Omicron variant.

"Now with Omicron, it may be more transmissible than Delta, that still has to be shown. But we are seeing a very rapid number of hospitalizations in children, they are one of our most vulnerable populations and have the lowest vaccination rates currently," Randolph said.

The doctor noted that while the transmissibility of Omicron is part of the problem, the low vaccination rate is driving the increase in the hospitalizations of children as well.

"It is highly, highly contagious and it is spreading very quickly. And the other issue is that even children who are eligible for the vaccine in many areas, the actual vaccinated rate is not that high. So, you know, it varies between 10% and 50% across the United States for even the 12-to 18-year-olds... and then the 5 to 11s, you know, some states it is less than 6% have taken the opportunity to get vaccinated. And these children who are getting admitted ... are either not vaccinated, or they have underlying medical conditions that puts them at risk," she said. ...

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