Penn State Health: Kids represent small fraction of inpatient COVID cases, most recover at home

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By: Sean Guay

Hershey, Pa – According to a newly published report, children represent a “small fraction” of the overall number who test positive at Penn State Health facilities, and most recover at home. There are currently no reported deaths in the state among children shown on the PA Covid Dashboard, which displays very limited data about children.

Caroline Machiraju interviewed Scott Gilbert of Penn State Health and Maggi Barton, Deputy Press Secretary at Pa DOH to get answers about the severity of COVID cases affecting children in Pennsylvania.

Machiraju determined that currently there are three children are diagnosed with COVID-19 at Penn State Health Children’s Hospital in Hershey, compared with zero pediatric COVID patients at Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center and Penn State Health St. Joseph Medical Center.

“It’s worth noting that these children represent a ‘small fraction’ of the overall number who test positive at Penn State Health facilities. Fortunately, many of them are able to be cared for on an outpatient basis and convalesce at home,” said Gilbert.

Machiraju’s findings contradict a recent PennLive.com report suggesting that hospitals are overrun with children suffering from COVID, and calls into question the justification to mandate masks for students by Pennsylvania Governor Wolf.

When reached for comment by phone, Maggi Barton at Pa DOH acknowledged the limited data on the state’s dashboard, but added: “We are working to collect that information.” She otherwise has not yet responded to email requests for follow up questions.

Read the full report here.

Caroline Machiraju is a contributing author and reporter for hbg100.com who has contributed to PennLive.com, MSN.com, and is a former writer for The News-Item.