Numerous states across the country are moving to ban gender-affirming care for transgender individuals.

In response, other states are now pushing to become sanctuaries for people seeking that health care.

"There's been a resurgence of a lot of anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ bills," said Brianna Titone, a Democratic state representative and Colorado's first openly transgender state lawmaker. "There are other bills in other states that are saying anybody who is trans cannot get any type of health care services for trans care up to age 25. So, we're not just talking about trans youth, but we're talking about trans adults."

Lawmakers across the country are working to address legal protections for transgender people, parents of transgender youth and providers of gender-affirming care. The protections stem from changes this year on the federal and state levels regarding abortion rights and gender-affirming care.

SEE MORE: Advocates Worry About The Effects Of State Laws Targeting LGBTQ Youth

"When the Dobbs decision came down, that scared a lot of people into what is possible that the Supreme Court can do to undo a lot of the protections that have already been done," Titone said.

According to the LGBTQ+ Victory Institute, these initiatives are led by many openly LGBTQ+ lawmakers. These bills would ban law enforcement from arresting people who go out of state to pursue gender-affirming care where it's legal.

"Texas would consider gender-affirming care for trans kids and trans youth to be child abuse," said Annise Parker, president and CEO of the LGBTQ+ Victory Institute. "That it would be investigated by the state, then those kids could be taken away from their families. Our legislators are looking for opportunities to send a public message that their states, if at all possible, will become safe havens for those families."

"It's a struggle for a lot of people that I talk to on a daily basis in a lot of different states," Titone said. "I think about that myself, not being able to get the care that I need. I may be able to get through that mentally, but there's a lot of people who can't. There are a lot of people that their gender dysphoria is so bad they result to harming themselves in deep depression. And that can ruin a person."

SEE MORE: The Effect Of Transgender Athlete Bans On Youth Sports

According to the Trevor Project, 52% of transgender and non-binary youth have considered suicide. The report also shows that for people under age 18, receiving hormones was associated with nearly 40% lower odds of recent depression and a past-year suicide attempt.

According to writings from Moira Szilagyi, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, there is a strong consensus that "evidence-based, gender-affirming care for transgender children and adolescents is medically necessary and appropriate. It can even be lifesaving." Szilagyi noted that it doesn't necessarily mean hormone therapy or surgery.

This is why Titone is pushing for protection in her state for gender-affirming care, continuing the trend that has happened in 18 other states.

"We're going to take a stance of putting up a barrier to make sure whatever kind of crazy things they come up with to try to go after people," Titone said. "Whether they're providers here or patients coming here, we're going to make sure that we protect them in any situation we can and stay within the constitution. And that's the tricky part, doing this without breaking any constitutional laws."

COVID-19 infections have continued to increase "exponentially" among children across the U.S., and now account for nearly 26% of all cases reported nationwide, according to data published Monday.

Over the past week, the American Academy of Pediatrics reported the second-highest total of new diagnoses among children over the course of the pandemic, with 225,978.

That is a slight decline from the week before when 243,373 new cases were reported.

The rise in cases comes as many students return to classrooms while not yet eligible for COVID-19 vaccines. Studies are underway for younger children, but currently only children 12 and older can get inoculated.

Health experts and officials have expressed concern about keeping young students safe until a vaccine is authorized for them.

"After declining in early summer, child cases have increased exponentially, with over 925,000 cases in the past four weeks," AAP said in a statement.

Children still less likely to suffer serious disease

The weekly case number reported Monday is about a 215% increase in cases among children since the week of July 22-29 when the group counted 71,726 cases.

As of Sept. 16, more than 5.5 million kids have tested positive for COVID-19.

Still, children are far less likely than adults to suffer serious disease or to die from COVID-19. Among states that report hospitalizations by age, children make up between 1.6% and 4.2% of patients hospitalized for COVID-19.

Among the states that report death by age, children accounted for no more than 0.25% of the deaths. Seven states have reported no pediatric deaths.

As of Sunday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 548 children younger than 18 had died for COVID-19 in the United States.

Vaccines could be ready by the end of the year

Health experts, like CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, have said that public health agencies are working to have a vaccine ready for younger children by the end of the year.

According to Dr. Scott Gottlieb, a board member at Pfizer and the former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, that timeline could be as soon as Halloween.

He told CBS' "Face the Nation" earlier this month that Pfizer is expected to have data on vaccinations for children ages 5 to 11 ready for the FDA by the end of September.

"The FDA says it will be a matter of weeks, not months, to make a determination if they're going to authorize vaccines for kids between 5 to 11. I interpret that to be perhaps four weeks, maybe six weeks," Gottlieb said.

But once those vaccines are available, it will be up to families to decide to vaccinate their children. And vaccination rates of those eligible have lagged behind where health experts said they need to be to slow or stop the spread of the virus.

About 54.7% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated, according to CDC data. And pre-teens and teens have the lowest COVID-19 vaccination rates of any age group.

SANTA ROSA, Calif. — You don’t need to live near a wildfire to feel the impact of toxic smoke being pumped into the air. Among the most vulnerable to the air quality is children.

“If this was a once-a-year event, and it then it wouldn’t happen again for 10 years, I wouldn’t worry so much," said pediatrician Dr. Lisa Patel, MD. "But climate change has basically made wildfires a yearly, possibly year-round occurrence.”

Dr. Patel, a clinical assistant professor of Pediatrics at Stanford University, says researchers are starting to learn more about the impacts of wildfire smoke on children's health.

A study in Pediatrics found that the microscopic particles in wildfire smoke are 10 times more harmful to children’s respiratory health than pollution from other sources

"What’s burning in wildfires, an entire house goes into flames, a car, and then, it turns into these little particles that we inhale and breathes in,“ said Dr. Patel. "As to how it's going to affect children over time, we just don't know because it has gotten so much more severe, so much more quickly. We'll get the data in 10 or 15 years."

But she says it does put them at risk for asthma, bronchitis, and pneumonia, and can also lead to missed days in the classroom.

“This is a concern and something that should be on everybody’s radar because these fires are so enormous and overwhelming and the wind can blow them into other places.”

And as wildfire season collides with the contagious delta variant, health experts say now is the time to upgrade school ventilation systems.

A U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that an estimated 54% of public school districts need to update or replace multiple building systems or features in their schools. In some cases, they’re creating hazardous conditions like mold.

“It's important to clean up indoor air quality for kid's health. It always has been. It feels even more important now because of both COVID-19 and the wildfires," said Dr. Patel.

Lessons learned in districts struck by wildfires can help other schools.

“Never thought twice about a fire in this area impacting us like it did," said Ron Calloway, superintendent of Mark West Union School District in Northern California. “With the Tubbs Fire, it was basically a torch, an 80 mile an hour torch, blowing through this block.”

Hundreds of students and staff lost their homes in the 2017 fire.

“When we have a smoke day from another fire, that triggers a lot of emotion from students," said Calloway.

Now, happening every year, he had to become an expert in dealing with toxic pollution.

Each classroom has an air scrubber to remove chemicals, toxins, and viruses from the air. And all heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems have HEPA filters to remove dangerous particles.

"It’s extremely toxic," said Calloway. “I say this to other districts, be prepared. Something is going to eventually happen in your area.”

But Patel sees an opportunity in the confluence of two public health crises. The pandemic prompted state and federal governments to fund upgrades to schools’ ventilation systems.

Last October, the California state legislature passed a bill allocating up to $600 million for upgrades, maintenance, and repairs to schools’ HVAC systems. Federal funds are also allocated through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020.

Patel's team is working with organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics and the nonprofit Mothers Out Front to educate physicians and parents on how to help school districts access the funds.

“Our schools are being asked to do a lot, and they can't do it on their own," said Patel. “Start the conversation, reach out to your principal to start and say I’m worried about this, what are our school’s plans, and how can I help?"