The young die as well from COVID-19, even as many engage in denial

But, in fact, "young and healthy" people can get ill — and die, too.

"Those who are in terrific shape, are young and have no prior illness can, indeed, become critically ill from COVID," said Nina Shapiro, a professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and author of the book, "HYPE: A Doctor's Guide to Medical Myths, Exaggerated Claims and Bad Advice.".

In addition, healthy people are continuing to unknowingly spread COVID to the elderly, who, in turn, become quite ill and are at higher risk for death.".

To those young adults who doubt their vulnerability to the pandemic, "I would invite them to visit our ICU and see the multiple tragedies of younger people who are infected with COVID," said Daniel S.

"I think people are willing themselves to believe that they are not at risk because they are young and healthy, but that's a very dangerous and mistaken belief.".

Riskier yet was the 10-day motorcycle rally in Sturgis, South Dakota, which drew almost half a million people in August.

"That concept that young people do not get extremely ill and die from COVID-19 is simply not true," said Jakob I.

McSparron said the myth that the young have little to fear from COVID has also led to people unknowingly infecting friends and loved ones, who have then died.

"We had a very young man with chronic disease who was very fearful of acquiring COVID," McSparron said.

The idea that COVID-19 was mostly a disease of the elderly took hold early in the pandemic when testing capacity was limited and directed largely toward residents of nursing homes and people who showed symptoms. .

"We found younger and younger people being infected," said Frank Esper, a pediatric infectious disease expert at Cleveland Clinic Children's hospital.

Obesity alone — listed in multiple recent studies as a risk factor for severe COVID-19 — afflicts an estimated 85 million adult Americans

Other risk factors listed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention include: chronic kidney disease (37 million Americans); smoking (34 million Americans); Type 2 diabetes mellitus (30 million Americans) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (16.4 million Americans)

Kaplan said the high rate of spread by younger Americans "belies the social contract that we have in which we care for and about one another."