These are the questions I'm asking as approval of a COVID-19 vaccine for younger children nears

As grandparents we wonder whether to recommend that our grandchildren, ages 2 to 7, get COVID-19 vaccinations. Vaccines for children 5 to 11 will soon be available under Emergency Use Authorization, and a vaccine will probably be ready the next few months for those younger.

We are not alone in questioning whether our grandkids should get the shots. A Kaiser Family Foundation survey in August showed that roughly one-quarter of parents of children aged 5 to 11 would vaccinate their children “right away,” 40% said they would “wait and see” how the vaccine worked before doing so, and 25% said they would not have their child vaccinated.

Pfizer and BioNTech submitted data last month to the Food and Drug Administration that the companies say shows their coronavirus vaccine in low doses is safe and effective in children ages 5 to 11. They studied 2,200 participants in that age group, and the FDA is analyzing this data in considering an Emergency Use Authorization that could come as early as Halloween. Then, 28 million children would be eligible for the vaccine, in addition to the 17 million aged 12 to 15 that became eligible in May, half of whom have been vaccinated.