Coronavirus hospitalizations among children have continued to increase in the state of Illinois, with nearly 1,200 children having been hospitalized because of COVID-19 in the state since last summer.
According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the state of Illinois is reporting an average of five new COVID hospitalizations per 100,000 children over the last seven days, representing a 22.2% increase over the previous week.
That number is tabulated over a seven-day period spanning from Aug. 17-23, according to the CDC. Data collected since that date is still considered “preliminary” by CDC officials, and “should be interpreted with caution.”
The number of COVID hospitalizations among children, while still significantly lower than it was during a peak in cases last November, has been steadily on the rise over the last month, increasing nine-fold since July 22.
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That number is reflective of a national trend of increased hospitalizations among children, although Illinois’ numbers are increasing at a much slower rate than those of the United States as a whole. According to the CDC, there have been an average of 311 new COVID hospitalizations per 100,000 children over the last seven days, a 12.4% increase over the previous week.
That number is the highest the nation has seen during the COVID pandemic, outpacing previous highs set in January.
In all, 50,243 children 17 years of age and younger have been hospitalized due to COVID in the United States since Aug. 2020, according to the CDC.
