As Georgia's children return to the classroom for in person learning, state epidemiologist report that they now make up over half of the COVID-19 cases in the state.
The 240 percent rise in COVID cases among children since July comes as the current delta variant surge sweeps Georgia, where only 45 percent of residents are vaccinated- well below the national average.
Dr. Mohammed Reza, an infectious disease specialist, told , news4jax.com that the rise in cases is mostly due to to students returning to school classrooms.
He expects to see a decline in positive cases when the vaccine is finally approved for younger children.
'It'll totally change how we combat this virus because we know how effective those vaccines are,' he said.
Children are still far less likely to have severe cases of COVID-19.
There have now been over 100 COVID-19 outbreaks in schools statewide since July.
There have been over 100 outbreaks in schools statewide since July 4, leading multiple school districts to close their schools or require mask in classrooms
Students in Camden County schools, which reported 64 positive cases among students and staff, have been required to wear masks in the classroom since school started last month
'The magnitude of this, of the number of cases here in this age group among school children is very significant,' state epidemiologist Cherie Drenzek told parents during a Board of Public Health meeting.
Multiple school districts in the state have had to close their schools or require mask in classrooms due to recent outbreaks.
After only a week in session Ware County Schools was forced to closed all of its 11 schools because of a 'sharp increase' in COVID-19 cases, news4jax.com reported.
Ware County Schools is currently reporting 23 positive COVID-19 cases.
Most school districts have returned for the fall semester sometime between the last month around the time the spike in cases for school-aged children began.
Glynn County students were required to do two weeks of virtual school following a recent rise in cases. When students finally returned to in-person learning on Monday, students were required to wear mask in classrooms.
Currently, Glynn County schools is reporting 112 positive cases, news4jax.com reported.
Students in Camden County schools, which reported 64 positive cases among students and staff, have been required to wear masks in the classroom since school started last month
In states reporting pediatric cases, children accounted for fewer than one-quarter of 1 percent of all COVID-19 deaths, according to National Public Radio.
But COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are rising among children nationwide.
A new report by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) shows that children accounted for 26.8 percent of new weekly US cases of COVID-19 - an unprecedented number since the start of the pandemic.
As of the week ending on September 2, nearly 252,000 child cases of COVID-19 were reported.
In recent weeks, 0.41 per 100,000 children ages 0 to 17 Have been hospitalized with COVID.
This is a high, with the previous peak set in mid-January at 0.31 per 100,000, according to an August 13 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Dr. Francis Collins, head of the National Institutes of Health, calls the recent spike in cases among children 'very worrisome. He noted that over 400 US children have died of COVID-19 since the pandemic began.
'After declining in early summer, child cases have increased exponentially, with over 750,000 cases added between August 5 and September 2,' the AAP said.
Gottlieb told Face the Nation that he believes local public school districts will make the COVID-19 vaccine a requirement - as it has done for other shots including inoculation against measles and other infectious diseases.
'I think you're going to see more local school districts and governors make those recommendations,' he said.
'Eventually ACIP (the CDC's Advisory committee on Immunization Practices) is going to make a recommendation about whether this should be included in the childhood immunization schedule.
'My guess is they're waiting for more of the vaccines to be fully licensed to make that kind of a recommendation.
'But I would expect this eventually to be required as part of the childhood immunization schedule.'
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