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As the Delta variant continues to surge across the United States, the number of hospitalizations has climbed to a six-month high. In the past week, the U.S. has reported a total of 770,000 people hospitalized with COVID-19. The daily average of new hospitalizations, which stands at 110,000, has jumped by more than 25% over the last seven days.
The virus is now infecting younger adults and children, leaving pediatric wards across the country inundated with patients. Florida has the highest rate of child hospitalizations per capita, with 8.1 per 100,000 residents. The U.S. average is 2.2 children hospitalized with COVID-19 per 100,000 residents.
Florida has the highest hospitalization rate for people ages 18 and 19 as well, with 20.6 hospitalizations per 100,000 residents.
Dr. Ronald Ford, the chief medical officer for the Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital, told WJXT the children who "are admitted are sicker than what we've seen before, and many of them are requiring care in our intensive care units."
He said that the number of children who were taken to the emergency room with COVID-19 has been climbing since June when they treated just 20 kids.
"That number went to well over 200 in July and, even at this point in the month of August, we are already up to over 160. So we're well on the way to breaking July's record," Ford told the news station.
Last week, over 94,000 children tested positive for COVID-19, making up 15% of the total cases.