Your questions about the record number of Kansas City kids hospitalized with COVID, answered
A record 30 children are hospitalized with COVID-19 at Children’s Mercy Hospital as of 5 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 5. This number is the highest the hospital has seen during the whole pandemic.
On Tuesday, we reported on what kids and parents should know about these recent cases. You had more questions, and we looked into them to find the most accurate and up-to-date information. Here’s what we know now.
Have even more questions? Email the Service Journalism team at kcq@kcstar.com or fill out the form at the end of this story.
Are the 30 hospitalized children vaccinated?
“Nearly all of our patients who have been hospitalized for COVID-19 are unvaccinated,” Lisa Augustine, a spokesperson for Children’s Mercy, told The Star on Wednesday, Jan. 5.
The Pfizer vaccine has been approved by the FDA and the CDC for use on children ages 5 to 17, and booster shots have been approved for 16 and 17 year olds.
On Monday, Jan. 3, the FDA announced that it was expanding its recommendation for booster shots to include children ages 12-15 as well. But children under 12 are still ineligible for a booster shot, while those younger than 5 currently can’t get vaccinated against COVID-19 at all.
Here’s where you can find vaccines around Kansas City.
How old are the COVID-19 patients at Children’s Mercy?
The 30 COVID-19 patients at Children’s Mercy hospital range in age from infants to teenagers. Recent data from the hospital shows that children of all ages have been testing positive at high rates in recent weeks.
As of Monday, Jan. 3, kids aged 2-6 years old led the pack with 272 positive tests in the previous week. Babies aged 0-2 years old have the second-highest number of positive tests, followed by the 13-18 age group and the 7-12 age group.
This data shows that younger children are testing positive at higher numbers than school-age children. However, the number of tests administered to children in each age group could be influencing these findings, which are positive test numbers, not positive test rates.
Are any children hospitalized with COVID-19 in the hospital for other reasons?
While some children may have other underlying health issues, all 30 kids are being treated for COVID-19 at Children’s Mercy are in the hospital because they have COVID-19.
Dr. Anthony Fauci recently stated that there’s a distinction in pediatric COVID-19 cases between kids who caught the disease after being admitted to the hospital for other reasons, and those who were first admitted for treatment of the disease itself. Augustine could not clarify if COVID-19 was the original reason that brought all 30 children to the hospital, but she did confirm that the 30 children are actively being treated for COVID-19. If we learn more, we’ll update this story.
Dr. Angela Myers, the hospital’s Infectious Diseases Division Director, told The Star that the children’s symptoms are similar to previous waves of the virus, but patient numbers are higher than ever before.
How many children have died from COVID-19 in Kansas City?
It’s hard to say. Determining which deaths are technically caused by COVID-19 and which aren’t is ultimately up to state governments, not individual hospitals, cities or counties.
The state of Missouri has reported eight COVID-19 deaths among people under 18 years old. The state of Kansas has reported six. That’s a total of 14 child deaths between the two states, but it’s unknown how many took place in the Kansas City area.
Data collected by The Star shows that overall death rates are holding steady at roughly six per day in recent weeks among people of all ages. That’s around half of the average last winter. These averages attempt to account for irregularities in reporting numbers, like the recent holiday weekends when no new data was reported.
Do you have more questions about COVID-19 in children or how to stay safe during the pandemic in Kansas City? Ask our Service Journalism team at kcq@kcstar.com or fill out the form below.
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