How should vaccinated parents navigate summer? A doctor's advice - CNN

And while my teen will qualify for a vaccine once it's approved for emergency use by the US Food and Drug Administration, people with children under age 12 don't have an answer yet.

It depends on three things: the type of activity involved, the risk profile of your household and your risk tolerance.

As we've said throughout the pandemic, it's safe to see one another outdoors, with people from different households spaced at least 6 feet apart.

That's certainly the safest way to hang out when you have "mixed" households -- households with a combination of vaccinated and unvaccinated people.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now says that unvaccinated people can be outdoors, without masks, if going on walks with their own households.

I actually think most outdoor events are safe, even for unvaccinated people.

Any time he's inside with others, though, he wears a mask, and so do the others.

Risk profile and risk tolerance really matter too.

And people also have different levels of risk tolerance.

Others will interpret it to mean children are at far less risk than adults, and that it's OK to resume many pre-pandemic normal activities once the parents are vaccinated.

Wen: That again depends on the camp and the precautions involved, as well as the risk profile and tolerance of the family.

The CDC says that a vaccinated household can see a household in which some people are not yet vaccinated, as long as the unvaccinated ones are not at high risk for severe outcomes from coronavirus.

Wen: This depends on risk tolerance and the importance of the visit.

But the risk of the travel itself to the unvaccinated kids is pretty low.

CNN: Given the expected upcoming FDA approvals, do you see most 12- to 15-year-olds getting vaccinated this summer, before they head back to school?

Wen: I think there are many, many children -- and their parents -- who are very eager to see this group get vaccinated before returning to school in the fall.

As with adults, I expect we will have one group that's very eager to be vaccinated that will go first; then others will see their friends get vaccinated and want to get the benefit of the vaccine, too.

CNN: What do you expect for fall?

I expect the fall will be even safer, as infection numbers decrease and more adults and older children are vaccinated.

There will be some, including younger children, who are not yet able to get vaccinated.