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In this week's edition of the Covid Q&A, we look at the risk of Covid for kids. In hopes of making this very confusing time just a little less so, each week Bloomberg Prognosis is picking one question sent in by readers and putting it to experts in the field. This week's question comes to us from Zhirong in Melbourne, Australia. In the state of Victoria, officials have signaled plans to begin easing restrictions once 70% its residents have received at least one dose, which is likely to happen before vaccines are recommended for younger kids Zhirong asks:

I have two kids both under 12. Like many panicking parents, I am worried about my kids as they are vulnerable to the virus, but at the same time, I haven't heard many kids are in hospital due to the virus. How vulnerable are kids to Covid?

Parents of kids under 12 are right to feel anxious. For those older than that, vaccines provide good protection from infection, and even in the rare case of breakthrough infections, greatly reduce the chances of becoming seriously ill. Vaccines haven't yet been given the green light for children under 12, and may not be for several months. That means that even as school gets under way, younger kids are without any protection. What's more, news reports from U.S. states like Missouri and Arkansas suggest more kids with Covid are winding up in the hospital.

So how at-risk are kids for getting very ill? For some perspective, we turn to Sarah Fortune, an infectious disease expert at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Children wait to enter an elementary school on the first day of classes in Mexico City, Mexico.

Photographer: Luis Antonio Rojas/Bloomberg

"In the current delta wave, we definitely are seeing kids under 12 who are getting infected," she said. "But they are ending up in the hospital—and god forbid, dying—much less frequently than adults."

In her home state of Massachusetts, for example, Fortune said kids under 12 make up about 13% of reported cases, but 1% of hospitalizations. This month there have so far been no reported deaths of children associated with the virus. In contrast, adults over 80 make up 2% of cases, 30% of the hospitalizations and more than 30% of deaths.

"Kids under 12 are definitely getting infected and going to get infected even in well-vaccinated communities because of delta transmission through vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals," Fortune said. "However, the risk of terrible outcomes in unvaccinated kids is much, much, much lower than in unvaccinated adults."

Fortune said that for her, that fact brings a measure of reassurance.

That said, with delta spreading and cases on the rise in places like the U.S., it's crucial to also mitigate risk through other methods, like social distancing and mask wearing.

"We should not minimize the tragedy of losing even one kid to an infection that could be prevented through greater community attention to vaccination and other forms of risk mitigation and should, as communities, keep our eyes on the ball," Fortune said.

Thanks to all of you for writing in this week! Next Sunday, we'll be answering the best question we receive again. So if you have any, we want to hear from you. Write to us at CovidQs@bloomberg.net—Kristen V. Brown

12 of the Most Pressing Questions Answered

Sam Fazeli is a senior pharmaceuticals analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence and Max Nisen is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering biotech, pharma and health care. They explain key aspects of the pandemic, from the need for boosters to the risk of new variants in the coming months and years.

Source: BSIP/BSIP/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

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