this report was posted as an MMWR Early Release on the MMWR website (https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr).Although COVID-19-associated hospitalizations and deaths have occurred more frequently in adults, † COVID-19 can also lead to severe outcomes in children and adolescents (1,2). Schools are opening for in-person learning, and many prekindergarten children are returning to early care and education programs during a time when the number of COVID-19 cases caused by the highly transmissible B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is increasing. § Therefore, it is important to monitor indicators of severe COVID-19 among children and adolescents. This analysis uses Coronavirus Disease 2019-Associated Hospitalization Surveillance Network (COVID-NET) ¶ data to describe COVID-19-associated hospitalizations among U.S. children and adolescents aged 0-17 years. During March 1, 2020-August 14, 2021, the cumulative incidence of COVID-19-associated hospitalizations was 49.7 per 100,000 children and adolescents. The weekly COVID-19-associated hospitalization rate per 100,000 children and adolescents during the week ending August 14, 2021 (1.4) was nearly five times the rate during the week ending June 26, 2021 (0.3); among children aged 0-4 years, the weekly hospitalization rate during the week ending August 14, 2021, was nearly 10 times that during the week ending June 26, 2021.** During June 20-July 31, 2021, the hospitalization rate among unvaccinated adolescents (aged 12-17 years) was 10.1 times higher than that among fully vaccinated adolescents. Among all hospitalized children and adolescents with COVID-19, the proportions * These authors contributed equally to this report.

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IMPORTANCE Racial and ethnic minority groups are disproportionately affected by COVID-19.OBJECTIVES To evaluate whether rates of severe COVID-19, defined as hospitalization, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, or in-hospital death, are higher among racial and ethnic minority groups compared with non-Hispanic White persons. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSThis cross-sectional study included 99 counties within 14 US states participating in the COVID-19-Associated Hospitalization Surveillance Network.

this report was posted as an MMWR Early Release on the MMWR website (https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr). The first U.S. case of COVID-19 attributed to the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) was reported on December 1, 2021 (1), and by the week ending December 25, 2021, Omicron was the predominant circulating variant in the United States.* Although COVID-19-associated hospitalizations are more frequent among adults, † COVID-19 can lead to severe outcomes in children and adolescents (2). This report analyzes data from the Coronavirus Disease 19-Associated Hospitalization Surveillance Network (COVID-NET) § to describe COVID-19-associated hospitalizations among U.S. children (aged 0-11 years) and adolescents (aged 12-17 years) during periods of Delta (