Children are being infected with COVID-19 at an alarming rate, worrying parents across the country about what’s happening to their children.
How many kids are getting COVID right now?
The American Academy of Pediatrics recently said there were more than 250,000 new coronavirus infections in children in the last week, which is the highest ever during the pandemic, per The Washington Post.
- In August, about 30,000 children were hospitalized with COVID-19, too.
- Many of the infected children are unvaccinated teens or children younger than 11 who are not eligible for shots, according to The Washington Post.
How do parents feel about kids and COVID?
Breanna Contreras and her husband put their children into schools because of their demanding jobs. And now they’re worried about it.
- “I feel like we’re constantly reacting,” Contreras told The Washington Post. “There’s not enough time to be proactive. It’s like a fire alarm every day.”
Why do kids need to be vaccinated?
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House medical adviser on the coronavirus, said recently that more children need to be vaccinated to stop the spread of COVID-19, according to CNBC.
- “I do believe … that we should vaccinate the children, and there are a number of reasons,” Fauci said, per CNBC.
- Fauci said children are often “vehicles of spread” right now since they’re gathering together in school.
Fauci said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that children need to be surrounded by vaccinated people, too.
- “For the kids who can’t get vaccinated, that’s the reason why we’re having a strong recommendation that, in the schools, everybody should wear a mask, whether or not you’re vaccinated.”
- “We’ve got to protect the children,” he said.