Mississippi Health Officials Warning About ‘Surge’ In Delta, With 7 Youngsters In ICU Due To COVID-19

Mississippi Health Officials are warning about hospitalizations of children with severe instances of COVID-19 as the delta form spreads fast across the country.

According to State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs, two of the seven youngsters now in the critical care unit owing to COVID-19 are on ventilators.

“Be cautious, Delta Surge,” Dobbs warned in a stern tweet Tuesday while providing the latest hospitalizations reports.

Dobbs first stated that 12 children were in the ICU across the state as a result of COVID-19, but subsequently changed his mind after a hospital rectified its data.

“Please be careful and protect yourself if you are 12 or older,” he urged.

COVID-19 infections are less common in children than in adults. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most people only have minor symptoms, if any at all, however, on rare occasions, severe cases have resulted in hospitalization or death.

It’s unclear what the seven children’s ages are, whether they were eligible for the COVID-19 vaccination, or whether any of them had underlying health problems that would put them at higher risk of serious COVID-19 disease. The Mississippi Department of Health has been contacted by ABC News for additional information on the instances.

The University of Mississippi Medical Center’s assistant vice chancellor for clinical affairs, Dr. Alan Jones, told ABC station WAPT in Jackson, Mississippi, that his institution is presently treating four juvenile COVID-19 patients, two of whom are on ventilators.

Jones told the channel, “We’ve got more pediatric admissions than we did early in the epidemic.”

Dobbs stated during a news conference last Friday that the state has seen a “very frightening” spike in the number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, as the highly contagious delta variation, which was first detected in India, has swiftly become the prevalent variant in the state.

“We’ve seen pretty much a full takeover of the delta variant for our transmission,” Dobbs said during the briefing, saying that “pretty much all delta” cases are currently being investigated in the state.

Dobbs said there are “concerns about it going ahead, as has been observed in other states” owing to delta, which has become the popular version statewide.

In the previous three weeks, Mississippi’s daily COVID-19 case average has more than quadrupled. In Mississippi, less than 100 individuals were being treated for COVID-19 less than three weeks ago. There were almost 200 as of July 11th. In the previous week, hospital admissions have climbed by 26.7 percent.

COVID-19 outbreaks have also increased in the state, notably among children, in summer activities, and in nursing facilities, according to Dobbs.

The delta variation is on the rise because Mississippi has the country’s second-lowest vaccination rate, with just around one-third of the state’s overall population completely immunized, according to the CDC. Unvaccinated persons account for the “vast majority” of illnesses, hospitalizations, and fatalities in the state, according to Dobbs.

Because of the poor vaccination rate, the state health agency urged people 65 and older, as well as those with chronic medical issues, to stay away from large indoor gatherings for several weeks.

“Our state’s collective under-vaccination has put us all at risk, particularly the most vulnerable,” Dobbs said.