COVID-19 is now more prevalent among children, says public health | Western Colorado

According to the Public Health COVID-19 Data Dashboard, 102 cases aged 0-9 years and 181 cases aged 10-19 years have been reported in the last 14 days.

The only other age range of more than 100 cases during that period was 30-40 years, 121 cases were reported.

Stefany Busch, a spokesperson for Mesa County Public Health, said there are several factors driving the increase in pediatric cases. Schools that have stricter testing policies than (above) and most other places can lead to more asymptomatic positives.

“Finding a child is a new home (of the virus), as other groups have already been taken,” Bush said.

According to Bush, COVID-19 needs to be close to each other for people to prosper, and identifying asymptomatic positives at school keeps those children away from other children. It helps to make it difficult for the virus to spread.

According to the COVID-19 Data Dashboard in Mesa County School District 51, the school district has 122 active COVID-19 positives, 38 of which are Grand Mesa Middle School and 11 of which are Central High School.

Currently, the county’s active outbreak list has a total of 88 10 district schools.

The schools are: Central high school. Taylor Elementary; Orchard Mesa Middle School; Grand River Academy; Dual Immersion Academy; Chatfield Elementary; Fruita Monument High School; Lincoln Orchard Mesa Elementary; Monument Ridge Elementary School and Grand Mesa Junior High School.

The increase in pediatric cases in Mesa County has not yet led to an increase in pediatric hospitalization.

According to Bush, there was one pediatric hospitalization in the last 14 days.

Governor Jared Polis said at a press conference Thursday that there are currently 11 pediatric hospitalizations in the state.

Police points out that there are six children aged 12-17 years currently hospitalized in Colorado with COVID-19, and the COVID-19 vaccine is very effective in preventing hospitalization for that age group. Is shown.

“It’s very sad to me that we have six young people aged 12-17 in the hospital with COVID-19 because we have to be zero,” he said.

According to the dashboard, there are 26 residents of Mesa County who are hospitalized with COVID-19, and there are a total of 35 COVID-19 hospitalizations in the county.

According to Bush, hospitalization is primarily among people over the age of 30.

Mesa County also sees a positive number of cases that have not been seen since the June and July surges. The county’s two-week total of positive cases surged to over 700, reaching 727 at the time of the county’s health renewal on Thursday.

Public health is unaware of anyone in the county experimenting with unproven dangerous drugs such as ivermectin to treat the virus.

Police said at a news conference that hospitalizations in Colorado were primarily among people who were not vaccinated against COVID-19.

According to Police, the virus is much less likely to spread to vaccinated people, and even if the vaccinated person catches it, the effects of the virus are generally minor.

“What we’re actually seeing is that this is an unvaccinated crisis,” Police said.

Police said that 75% of eligible Colorado residents received at least their first shot.

According to the dashboard, that number is 49% in Mesa County.

Police said people who received a third COVID-19 injection to boost their immunity (these are available to people with certain conditions), that their children are back in school, and that their employer Their workers, who said they expect an increase in the number of people who will be vaccinated soon, will be vaccinated because they are obliged to do so.

Public health will wait for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) approval before making the third shot available to everyone, Bush said. Public health is preparing for a surge in vaccination in the event of such approval, she said.

Police encourages unvaccinated people to talk to their doctors about how the vaccine can protect them, to help small medical practices and family doctors spread the vaccine to their patients. Announced a program that allows you to receive $ 60,000 to $ 120,000.

“No one else needs to die from this preventable disease,” Dr. Mark Moss, director of lung science and emergency medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, said at a news conference.