Trump continues to downplay the threat of coronavirus to children as he forces schools to reopen without the necessary guidelines and resources to keep them safe. New reports make it clear that students, teachers, and their families are at risk and experts urge him to implement comprehensive safety measures.

Trump has wrongly claimed that children are “almost immune” to coronavirus, despite more than 97,000 children testing positive for COVID-19 in the last two weeks of July.

CNN: “More than 97,000 children in the US tested positive for coronavirus in the last two weeks of July, a new report says. The report, published by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association, said in those two weeks, there was a 40% increase in child cases across the states and cities that were studied.”

And new research continues to debunk Trump’s claims by finding that children are at risk for contracting and carrying coronavirus. 

Wall Street Journal: “Several studies and reports published in recent weeks found coronavirus infections among children of all ages at places ranging from schools to camps to homes. Other research suggested that kids, especially older ones, can be a driving force behind transmission. And some researchers found children carry high levels of Covid-19’s genetic material in their upper respiratory tract,which doesn’t mean they are transmitting the virus but that they potentially could.”

NPR: “While most children who catch the coronavirus have either no symptoms or mild ones, they are still at risk of developing “severe” symptoms requiring admission to an intensive care unit, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a new report released Friday. Hispanic and Black children in particular were much more likely to require hospitalization for COVID-19, with Hispanic children about eight times as likely as white children to be hospitalized, while Black children were five times as likely.”

Bloomberg: “The study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed pediatric hospitalization data for 576 cases in 14 states. It found that about eight children are hospitalized for every 100,000 infected, compared with more than 164 adults per 100,000. But between March and July, the hospitalization rates of children increased steadily, with Black and Latino children hospitalized at a higher rate. Among 208 hospitalized children with complete medical chart reviews, a third were admitted to an intensive care unit. One died and 12 needed invasive ventilation.”

New coronavirus cases are reported after schools in Georgia have been forced to close or quarantine when students and teachers tested positive after the schools reopened without a comprehensive plan in place to ensure the safety of children, and teachers, and their families. 

CNN: “Georgia school seen in photo of a crowded hallway will briefly move to online learning after reporting 9 cases of Covid-19”

CNN: “At least 260 students and eight teachers from a suburban school district in Atlanta, Georgia, were quarantined after multiple students and teachers tested positive for Covid-19 during the first week of school. In statements posted on its website, the Cherokee County School District reported positive cases in at least 11 students and two staff members. Students and staff who had possible exposure with a positive case have been told to quarantine for two weeks. The students were from the county’s elementary, middle and high schools.”