Although children have a lower risk of getting seriously ill from COVID-19, it still happens. Consider the following:
As of March 2023, more than 15 million children in the United States have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and more than 1,700 of them died of it. (See the CDC's COVID data tracker for more information.)
Some kids with COVID develop a dangerous condition called "multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children," or MIS-C. Since the beginning of the pandemic, several thousand children have been diagnosed with MIS-C. About 60 to 70% of them required intensive care, and about 1 to 2% died.
We don't yet know whether COVID-19 infection has long-term effects on kids' health.
Vaccination is highly effective in protecting people from contracting the virus and in preventing serious symptoms in those who do contract COVID. Vaccinating all eligible children and adults is also critical for limiting the spread of COVID-19 to vulnerable family and community members, such as those with underlying conditions that put them at risk of serious illness if they get COVID.
Widespread vaccination has the potential to end the pandemic and allow us all to return to school, work and our favorite activities.