More young people are getting infected with the coronavirus at higher numbers. Experts fear that will only grow as many colleges and schools reopen.
In August alone, for example, nearly 7,000 people between ages 18-24 tested positive for Covid-19 in Missouri, Gov. Mike Parson said. About 30% of the new cases in the state are among that age group.
“While young, healthy people are likely to have mild symptoms and quick recoveries … they may unknowingly carry Covid-19 to someone older or with underlying conditions, who is unable to fight off the virus. This is why it is so important for young people to take precautions and understand the responsibility,” Parson said.
While more young people continue to test positive, the vast majority of them have not required hospitalization.
“I know there is a lot of concern right now regarding college students. But I want to assure you that our colleges, and our universities, have plans in place and are taking all steps necessary to keep their students and communities as safe as possible,” Parson said.
College campuses in at least 40 states have seen outbreaks of the virus, and officials are urging caution heading into the holiday weekend.
“I understand many will probably not be going home since they just got on campus. So they’ll be around and they’ll have some free time,” Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said. “You’ve got to be cautious over this weekend.”
Over 200 of the 969 new cases reported in the state are from Washington County, home to the University of Arkansas, he said. In the county, four out of every five positive tests were among people between the ages of 18 and 24.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, pointed out measures that colleges and universities should take to open successfully.
Colleges should only consider reopening if they have several protocols in place, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases told CNN by phone. They include testing every student, surveillance testing at various intervals and readily available quarantine spaces.
“They’ve got to have the capability of doing the testing to begin with,” said Fauci, who emphasized testing upon arrival. “They’ve got to have the capability of doing surveillance testing as you get into the school year, and they have to have a plan of how they handle the inevitability of some students who are going to wind up getting affected.”
It would be unrealistic to assume that there are no Covid-19 cases on campus, he said, noting that planning should include designated specific quarantine spaces for students who contract the virus.