As Schools Reopen, Arizona Confronts High Rates of COVID-19 in Young People

“Arizona has been hit particularly hard for adults,” said Joe Gerald, an associate professor at the University of Arizona’s College of Public Health who creates COVID-19 forecast models. “It’s not surprising that children have also been hit hard.” That higher infection rate, combined with the state’s relatively young population, means more young people are getting the virus, Gerald said. About a quarter of Arizonans are 19 or younger – about 59% of them Hispanic.