Nearly 700,000 children in US test positive for COVID-19

WASHINGTON -- Nearly 700,000 children in the United States have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic, according to a new report of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association.

A total of 77,073 new child cases were reported from Sept 24 to Oct 8, which was a 13 percent increase in child cases over two weeks, according to the report.

Altogether 697,633 child COVID-19 cases had been reported in the United States so far, and children represented 10.7 percent of all those infected, said the report.

The overall rate was 927 cases per 100,000 children in the population. Children accounted for 0.9 percent to 3.6 percent of total reported hospitalizations, and 0 to 0.23 percent of all COVID-19 deaths, said the report.

"At this time, it appears that severe illness due to COVID-19 is rare among children. However, states should continue to provide detailed reports on COVID-19 cases, testing, hospitalizations, and mortality by age and race/ethnicity so that the effects of COVID-19 on children's health can be documented and monitored," said the report.