Key Points

In Week 37 (September 13–19, 2021), the second week after the start of the school year, emergency department visits and subsequent hospitalizations increased among children (+14%, or +10,999 visits, and +10%, or +316 hospitalizations) and remained stable among adults. Visits for suspected COVID-19 across all age groups are down for the fifth consecutive week (-28% vs. -26% in Week 36). In total, there were 2,442 visits (vs. 3,401 in Week 36, a decrease of 959 visits) with a declining share of activity (0.8% vs. 1.1% in Week 36). This decline is observed across all age groups: under 2 years old: -32% (i.e., -29 visits), 2–14 years old: -11% (i.e., -12 visits), 15–74 years old: -29% (i.e., 767 fewer visits), and 75 years and older: -27% (i.e., 151 fewer visits). The proportion of hospitalizations following visits across all age groups was slightly lower (46% vs. 48% in Week 36). At the regional level, emergency department visits for suspected COVID-19 are declining in all regions. Since the start of surveillance on February 24, 2020, 559,266 emergency department visits for suspected COVID-19 have been recorded. Among children, two weeks after the start of the school year, the majority of indicators are on the rise, particularly for asthma (+59%, or +1,136 visits), ENT conditions (+50%, or 2,773 visits), and chickenpox among 2- to 14-year-olds (+46%, or 27 visits). Bronchiolitis is up by 88% (21% in week 36) among children under 2 years of age. An increase in visits for asthma is also observed among adults aged 15–74 (+35%, or 302 visits).