More children under 18 in N.J. are testing positive for COVID, data shows – NJ.com

As millions of unvaccinated children are preparing to head back to school, the number of COVID cases among children under age 18 in New Jersey is on the rise, according to state Health Department figures.

For the week ending Aug. 14, 6.58% of children younger than 18 tested positive out of 37,407 tests, the Health Department said. The figures, obtained by NJ Advance Media, have crept up each week since the week ending July 3, when the positivity rate was 1.05% out of 28,016 tests.

That’s higher than the 5.3% test positivity rate for the general population, based on 229,166 tests for the week ending Aug. 14.

The number of children hospitalized for COVID has risen, but remains very low.

The Department of Health said New Jersey hospitals reported 2 child hospitalizations during the week ending July 3; 7 for the week ending July 31; 12 for the week ending Aug. 7; and 10 for the week ending Aug. 14.

Nationally, the number of hospitalized children has been steadily climbing since mid-June, particularly in the south and mid-west, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Health and Human Services.

“I suspect that the (positive testing) rates for children are increasing as families return from vacations and are having their kids tested before returning for school,” said Stephanie Silvera, an epidemiologist at Montclair State University. “In addition, case rates in kids are increasing because they are more likely to be unvaccinated and therefore are the most vulnerable in terms of transmission.”

The higher positive test rates among children is a “predictable consequence of loosening mask requirements prematurely and the immediate cause is the Delta variant,” said Lawrence Kleinman, professor and vice chair of pediatrics at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

“You have this large reservoir of unvaccinated individuals, and you add to this the mindset that we’re post-pandemic, and an increase in cases was inevitable,” he said. “In addition, you had this myth early on that children were spared and we’re seeing the serious consequences of all of that now.”

Kleinman said mitigation efforts in schools will be critical, including masking, spacing, air circulation and more.

“I think that unless there is sufficient attention to these things in individual schools and individual school districts, there will be outbreaks and spreading, with occasional superspreading,” he said, noting that he has a child who will attend school in person this year but is too young to be vaccinated. “I am scared.”

Nalin Johri, acting program director at the Seton Hall Department of Interprofessional Health Sciences and Health Administration, said the increased positivity appears to be related to children not being vaccinated.

“As the general population sees increased vaccination rates, positivity rates among children can be expected to increase,” Johri said. “At the same time, children do not show more severe infection or increased need for hospitalization than the general population.”

About 53% of 12- to 17-year-olds have received at lease one dose of the coronavirus vaccine, a 3 per increase over the week before, Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said at Monday’s coronavirus briefing. That leaves 323,000 children in that age range unvaccinated, she said. Children under 12 are still not eligible for the vaccine and it’s unclear when they will be eligible.

“It has never been more urgent” to have eligible children and adults vaccinated, she said. “We must do better,” she said.

“We are in a race against time,” she said.

Seven children in New Jersey have died of COVID since the start of the pandemic, according to state data.

Gov. Phil Murphy noted that southern and mid-western states have already seen cases among children skyrocket, causing some schools to switch to virtual learning at least for the time being.

In Hillsborough County, Florida, more than 13,000 students and staff are quarantining, he said, noting that more than 20,000 students across Mississippi have been exposed to the virus. And, he said Ware County, Georgia closed all of its schools, and in Texas, multiple districts have closed or delayed the start of their school years because of rising cases among students and staff.

Murphy previously mandated masks for all students, teachers, staff members and visitors from preschool through 12th grade. It includes all public, private, parochial, charter, and renaissance schools. On Monday, he said there would be a vaccine mandate or required testing for educators and staff at all schools in the state.

The requirement came with the spread of the Delta variant, which makes up 96% of all new cases in the state, according to state data.

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Karin Price Mueller may be reached at KPriceMueller@NJAdvanceMedia.com.