As millennials mingled in bars and restaurants over the summer, and students returned to college campuses, coronavirus infections surged among young adults.
From June through August, the incidence of Covid-19 was highest among adults aged 20 to 29 years old, according to research published on Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Young adults accounted for more than 20 percent of all confirmed cases.
But the infections didn’t stop with them, the researchers found: Young adults also seeded waves of new infections among the middle-aged, and then in older Americans.
The new data show that outbreaks linked to parties, bars, dormitories and other crowded venues are hazardous not just to the twenty-somethings who are present, but to more vulnerable Americans with whom they are likely to come into contact.
College campuses have become a particular threat. According to a database maintained by The New York Times, there were more than 88,000 coronavirus infections reported on nearly 1,200 campuses as of early September.
At a Congressional hearing on Wednesday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned against sending home students from colleges experiencing outbreaks.
The incidence of Covid-19 cases was highest among those in their 20s, but the spike in cases in this age group was quickly followed by increases in infections among people 60 and older, the researchers found. ..
In the South, where cases rose dramatically over the summer, a clear pattern emerged. Within nine days of a rise in cases among those in their 20s and 30s, cases rose among those aged 60 and older. ...
Younger adults likely are playing a significant role in spreading the virus, which can be transmitted before people know they have been infected and before they show symptoms, the researchers said. ...
