Transitioning to Adult Care Should Not Be Defined by Arbitrary Age Limits

The American Academy of Pediatrics has updated its previous policy statement on the age limit of pediatrics to reflect new approaches on transitioning to adult care. The updated policy statement, "Age Limit of Pediatrics," in the September 2017 issue of Pediatrics (published online Aug. 21) recommends the age of transition for young adults from pediatric to adult care be based on the patients' individual needs. The decision should be made solely between the patient (and family, when appropriate) and the physician and consider the physical and psychosocial needs of the patient and the abilities of the pediatric provider to meet those needs. In addition, the AAP recommends that the establishment of arbitrary age limits on pediatric care by health care providers should be discouraged and that health care insurers and other payers not place limits that affect the patient's choice of care provider based solely on age.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 66,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults. For more information, visit www.aap.org and follow us on Twitter @AmerAcadPeds