AAP Unveils Transition Plan for Biden-Harris Administration

Plan outlines comprehensive policy recommendations focused on advancing children's health

Washington, DC – Today, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) unveiled the Transition Plan: Advancing Child Health in the Biden-Harris Administration, which outlines specific policy recommendations to support our nation's children and their futures. 

The entire plan can be found at AAP.org/Transition.

The transition plan offers comprehensive steps the Biden-Harris administration can take to address a wide range of pressing child health issues, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccinations, immigration, health equity and racism, environmental health and many more topics.  

"The stakes for children could not be higher right now. The global pandemic continues to have devastating consequences for children's physical and mental health, and we know that children and adolescents of color are being disproportionately affected," said AAP President Sally Goza, MD, FAAP. "Our leaders must advance policies that address health inequities in our communities and ensure all children can grow up healthy and thrive. The Academy's transition plan for the Biden-Harris administration outlines bold policy recommendations crafted with those goals in mind."  

As shared in the transition plan, the Academy advocates for policies to ensure every child has the opportunity to grow up healthy and safe – regardless of race, income, gender, sexuality, religion, disability, or immigration status. Some recommendations from AAP include:

• Develop and fund a national strategy to implement the public health measures we know can stop the spread of COVID-19 in communities.
• Ensure that children are included in COVID-19 vaccine trials and increase public confidence in vaccinations.
• Adopt health equity and dismantling racism as a defining principle for policy change.
• Immediately reunite all previously separated children with their parents and end family detention.
• Work toward covering all children by facilitating children’s enrollment in health insurance and rescinding Medicaid waivers that reduce coverage.
• Commit to addressing the child health impact of climate change, by rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement and maximizing reductions of carbon pollution.

The recommendations in the transition plan build on the Academy's Blueprint for Children, released in October, which focused on how government leaders can support healthy children, secure families, and strong communities and ensure America's role as a leading nation for youth. 

"Pediatricians stand ready to work with the Biden-Harris administration and leaders at all levels of government to ensure children's health is prioritized in all decision-making. Their futures are on the line, and children are counting on us to act," said Dr. Goza.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 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