The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association called on the federal government to declare an emergency due to an increase in pediatric respiratory illnesses like influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).
The heads of the Children’s Hospital Association (CHA) and American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) called (pdf) on President Joe Biden and Department of Health Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra “to declare an emergency to support the national response to the alarming surge of pediatric hospitalizations due to pediatric respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza along with the continuing children’s mental health emergency.”
Without providing specific data, they added that the pediatric hospitals “are being asked to support more care and higher levels of care than ever before.”…