First COVID-19 Death Of Child In Eastern Region Of VA Reported

VIRGINIA — The Eastern Region of Virginia has reported its first COVID-19 death of a child, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

VDH said the child died from complications of COVID-19. No other information was released to protect the privacy of the child and respect the family.

WAVY.com confirmed the child was a 17-year-old from Norfolk. Her mother told the news station the illness first seemed like a cold. The teen died last week, just before she was set to receive the COVID-19 vaccine on Aug. 3. The family urged others to get the vaccine so they wouldn't lose their loved ones.

While COVID-19 deaths are more common among older adults, there have been two deaths in the 0 to 9 age group and seven in the 10 to 19 group in Virginia. To date, there have been 11,558 deaths linked to COVID-19 among all ages in Virginia.

"As we have seen in recent weeks, a COVID variant, the Delta variant, spreads more easily from one person to another," said State Health Commissioner M. Norman Oliver in a statement. "We have made progress in these past months against this virus, but a tragic event like the death of this young child is a stark reminder that our work is not done."

The news came Thursday as Gov. Ralph Northam announced a vaccine mandate for state employees and encouraged others to get vaccinated. At Thursday's news conference, the governor did not reintroduce a statewide mask mandate but highlighted vaccinations as the strategy to tackle the growing concern of the delta variant. The variant, now the predominant variant in the U.S., has been linked to rising COVID-19 cases largely among unvaccinated people. Many of Virginia's cases, hospitalizations and deaths since Jan. 21 have been among people who were not fully vaccinated.

Children under 12 are not yet eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The Pfizer vaccine is available for ages 12 and up while Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are available for ages 18 and up. Clinical trials are happening for children under 12, signaling a possible authorization as soon as late 2021. Pfizer/BioNTech are also requesting full approval from the FDA for their vaccine, a change from the current emergency use authorization.

Masks will be present in K-12 schools this fall with younger children not yet able to be vaccinated. Northam pointed to in-person learning legislation passed by the Virginia General Assembly in March 2021 requiring school divisions to follow the latest CDC guidance. CDC guidance calls for universal indoor masking in K-12 schools.