LOS ANGELES, June 7 (Xinhua) -- Over 400,000 child COVID-19 cases have been reported in the United States in the past 4 weeks, according to the latest report by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children's Hospital Association.

       Almost 13.5 million children have tested positive for COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic in the country, and about 5.6 million reported cases have been added in 2022, according to the report published late Monday.

       For the week ending June 2, over 87,000 child COVID-19 cases were reported.

       Children represent 18.9 percent of all COVID-19 cases in the United States, according to the report.

       There is an urgent need to collect more age-specific data to assess the severity of illness related to new variants as well as potential longer-term effects, said the AAP.

       "It is important to recognize there are immediate effects of the pandemic on children's health, but importantly we need to identify and address the long-lasting impacts on the physical, mental, and social well-being of this generation of children and youth," it said.