American Academy of Pediatrics Releases Guidance on Managed Health Care for Infants Through Early Adulthood

The American Academy of Pediatrics details the ways to increase the effectiveness of managed health care programs in a policy statement, “Guiding Principles for Managed Care Arrangements for the Health of Newborns, Infants, Children, Adolescents and Young Adults.” The statement, written by the AAP Committee on Child Health Financing, will be published in the August 2022 Pediatrics (published July 25 online), offering key principles that should be included in managed care programs. This includes ensuring that managed care provides families with access to a broad array of quality primary care pediatric services and specialty care within their “medical home.” Pediatric services, unlike those for adults, more often target prevention rather than treatment and will have a significant impact that carries through into adulthood, the statement observes. Services particularly important for pediatric patients include screenings, assessments, and services in the realms of development, behavioral/mental health and reproductive health, as well as care management services, social work services, occupational and physical therapy, vision screening, hearing screening, and speech and language therapies. By offering early prevention care, the population will benefit by reducing the burden of chronic disease among future adults. The AAP calls for providing pediatricians with the tools and support of the health care delivery system to ensure the health and readiness of tomorrow’s adult population.

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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.