WATCH: Fauci says to expect more children infected with coronavirus

Dr. Anthony Fauci says Americans can expect to see more children infected with the coronavirus as the highly transmissible delta variant extends its hold across the country.

Watch the briefing in the player above.

“Quantitatively, you will see more children in the hospital,” the government’s top infectious disease expert said at Thursday’s coronavirus briefing. Fauci said at least 117 countries around the world are facing the delta variant, which is more than twice as transmissible than the previous strain of coronavirus. However, it’s still not clear whether the delta variant leads to more severe illness in children, Fauci said.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the best way to protect young children not yet eligible for vaccines is for their parents to get shots.

The CDC is also studying so-called “long COVID” in children. Early data suggests those lingering symptoms are not nearly as prevalent among children as adults, but Walensky said more study is needed.