First COVID-19 child death confirmed in Idaho

The first death of an Idaho child attributed to COVID-19 was reported Tuesday by the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare and Southwest District Health.

The child was an infant who died in October.

“Our hearts go out to the family of this child,” said Elke Shaw-Tulloch, administrator for the Idaho Division of Public Health. “Infection with the virus can have devastating impacts on families, and this situation highlights the seriousness of COVID-19.”

To protect the privacy of the child’s family, no further details were released to the public.

"We were saddened to hear of the loss of one our newest community members. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family during this difficult time," said Nikole Zogg, SWDH director.

Deaths of children attributed to COVID-19 are rare.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website, as of Nov. 9, there have been 897 deaths in the 0-17 age group due to COVID-19 in the United States. Of those, 282 were in the 0-4 age group, 189 in the 5-11 age group, 219 in the 12-15 group and 207 in the 16-17 age group.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics: "As of November 4, over 6.5 million children have tested positive for COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic. This week over 107,000 child cases were added, a slight increase over the prior week. Child cases have declined since a peak of 252,000 the week of September 2nd, but COVID cases among children remain extremely high. For the 13th week in a row child COVID-19 cases are above 100,000. Since the first week of September, there have been almost 1.5 million additional child cases."

According to the state's website, 262 people under the age of 18 have been hospitalized with COVID-19 in Idaho.

In Idaho, there have been 16 deaths in the 18-29 age group attributed to the coronavirus. In Panhandle Health District, two deaths in the 18-29 age group have been attributed to the coronavirus.

Kids age 5 to 11, nearly 30 million nationwide, are now eligible for the Pfizer vaccine since it was recently approved for the age group.

Local providers offering pediatric COVID vaccines include: Walgreens, Lakeside Pediatrics, CDA Pediatrics, Heritage Health (Rathdrum location) and Rite Aid in Coeur d'Alene.

According to healthline.com, vaccine trials in children ages 6 months to 5 years are underway in the United States and under supervision by the FDA. Data about how vaccines affect children 6 months and older are expected to be released by the end of the year or early 2022.