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Hospital admissions for U.S. children under 5 with COVID-19 have surged in recent weeks to their highest level since the pandemic began, according to government data released today.
The worrying trend among children too young to be vaccinated underscores the need for older children and adults to get their vaccinations to protect their surroundings, said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Since early December, when the highly contagious variant of Omicron spread rapidly across the country, the hospitalization rate for these youngest children has risen to more than 4 in 100,000 children.
According to CDC data, this is around 1 in 100,000 in children ages 5-17.
In a statement, Walenksy said that while children still have the lowest hospitalization rate of any age group, “children’s hospitalizations have the highest rate compared to any previous point in the pandemic”.
Speaking at a briefing, she said the numbers include children hospitalized for COVID-19 and those admitted for other reasons but infected.
She found that just over 50% of children ages 12-18 are fully vaccinated and only 16% of children ages 5-11 are fully vaccinated.
On Tuesday, the average number of children and adolescents admitted to hospital with COVID-19 each day was 766, twice as many as two weeks ago.
At a White House briefing this week, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the leading U.S. infectious disease expert, reported that many children hospitalized with COVID-19 have other health conditions that make them more prone to complications from the virus. These include obesity, diabetes, and lung diseases.
Fauci and Walensky emphasized that one of the best ways to protect the youngest children is to vaccinate everyone else.
Data suggests that booster vaccinations are the best protection against Omicron, and CDC recommended them for children 12 and older this week. Of the older age groups already eligible, they only received 34%.
The surge in hospital admissions only adds to the concerns of parents worried about how to protect their infants and young children.
Emily Hojara and Eli Zilke from Sawyer, Michigan, take special care of their daughter Flora, who will be 2 years old in May. They limit their contact with other children, and no visitors are allowed in the house unless they are masked, not even grandparents.
“It was a fight and now with this new line I feel like it set us back,” said Hojara. She said the new hospitalization dates “just remind you that this fear is very close.”
“It’s scary that she can’t be vaccinated,” said Hojara of her daughter.
Dr. Jennifer Kusma, a pediatrician at Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago, said she’s seen more and more children hospitalized with Omicron, and while most aren’t seriously ill, she understands parents’ concerns.
“As a pediatrician, I really wish we had this vaccine for these young children,” said Kusma. However, she added that what may seem like a long wait should reassure parents that vaccine tests aren’t rushed.
Many had hoped the New Year could bring a vaccine for young children, but Pfizer announced last month that two doses in children ages 2 to 4 years old would not provide the protection it had hoped for.
Pfizer’s study has been updated to give a third dose to anyone under the age of 5, and data is expected in early spring.
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