In a tumultuous and unpredictable election year, Americans selected Donald Trump as our 45th president. Mr Trump’s approach to policymaking is still unknown, and his positions on certain issues do not follow the typical partisan patterns within American politics. However, Mr Trump has expressed support for family-oriented policies, including paid family leave and child care subsidies. His administration may present an opportunity to continue working on efforts to provide children with the essential elements needed to lead healthy and productive lives. The priorities and policy decisions President Trump takes will have a lasting impact on our nation’s future.
To help guide these decisions, in advance of the election, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) laid out a comprehensive plan for the federal government to give children, families, communities, and the nation a solid foundation for the future.
The Academy’s plan, Blueprint for Children: How the Next President Can Build a...
Wonderful article! However, I highly doubt Donald Trump and his cabinet will read the Academy’s Blueprint(1). Sadly, the dream of a national framework for healthy child development(2) has turned into a national nightmare.
A group of 370 prominent economists, including eight Nobel laureates, sternly warned us that Trump would be a “dangerous, destructive choice for the country”. The federal debt-to-gross domestic product will increase. America's poor will get poorer. The rich, especially the top 1%, will get richer. Child poverty (or near poverty) rates will rise well above 50%.
Trump’s cabinet picks (eg, Scott Pruit for the Environmental Protection Agency or Rick Perry for Secretary of Energy) promote policies that will accelerate climate change. The seas will rise approximately 3 meters in less than a century. Sea levels could rise at least 6 metersabove their current heights, radically reshaping the world’s coastline. Coastal communities and the global economy will be devastated. Severe weather, famines, infectious diseases and immigrant migrations will follow.
Dr. Tom Price, Trump’s pick for the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, will support the powerful and hurt the vulnerable.(3) After the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is repealed, millions will lose their insurance and government medical bills will increase. The ACA directly lowered total healthcare spending, even though it expanded insurance coverage to millions of people. The projected national spending on medical services, doctors, drugs, and devices between 2014 and 2019 is $2.6 trillion less than what was projected when the ACA was passed in 2010. Under Dr. Price, doctors and insurance companies will become more wealthy but the losers will be low-income children/families who rely upon the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and Medicaid, and females who rely upon Planned Parenthood.
Regarding Betsy DeVos, Trump’s pick for the Secretary of Education, it’s hard to find anyone more passionate about steering public dollars away from public schools. Money for early childhood education will shrink, or worse, we’ll see cuts across the board that’ll make pre-K enrollment decrease.
After funding for social programs is slashed and Planned Parenthood loses funding altogether, access to family-friendly services will be restricted. The number of unplanned and drug-affected pregnancies will increase.The percentage of abused, neglected and foster care children will increase. The percentage of children and adolescents with developmental disabilities, mental health disorders and substance abuse problems will increase.
Without common sense gun law legislation, gun violence (including suicides and murders) will likely increase. Meaningful criminal justice system reform isn't going to happen either. Instead, millions of established immigrant families will be broken up and deported. Tensions between immigrant families and conflicted law officers will escalate.
State and local governments, plus organizations like the AAP must awaken their inner warrior. We must coldly recognize that Trump will be an absolute disaster for the well-being of America’s children.
What should pediatricians do? Read the Academy’s Blueprint and be prepared to fight, fight, fight!
References
1. American Academy of Pediatrics. Blueprint for Children: How the Next President Can Build a Foundation for a Healthy Future. 2016. Available at: www.aap.org/blueprint. Accessed January 3, 2017.
2. Marks KP, Vargas-Barón, E. Let’s create a national policy framework for healthy child development! The Hill. August 10, 2016. Available at: http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/healthcare/290944-lets-create-a-n... Accessed January 3, 2017.
3. Glied SA, Frank RG. Care for the Vulnerable vs. Cash for the Powerful — Trump’s Pick for HHS. NEJM December 21, 2016. Available at: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1615714 Accessed January 3, 2017.
Wonderful article! However, I highly doubt Donald Trump and his cabinet will read the Academy’s Blueprint (1). Sadly, the dream of a national framework for healthy child development (2) has turned into a national nightmare.
A group of 370 prominent economists, including eight Nobel laureates, sternly warned us that Trump would be a “dangerous, destructive choice for the country”. The federal debt-to-gross domestic product will increase. America's poor will get poorer. The rich, most especially the top 1%, will get richer. Child poverty (or near poverty) rates will rise above 50%.
Trump’s cabinet picks (eg, Scott Pruit for the Environmental Protection Agency or Rick Perry for Secretary of Energy) promote policies that will accelerate climate change. The seas will rise approximately 3 meters in less than a century. Sea levels could rise at least 6 meters (20 feet) above their current heights, radically reshaping the world’s coastline. Coastal communities and the global economy will be devastated. Severe weather, famines, infectious diseases and immigrant migrations will follow.
Dr. Tom Price, Trump's pick for the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, will support the powerful and hurt the vulnerable. (3) Our healthcare system will be in shambles after the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is repealed. Insurance will generally become more expensive while our government's medical bills increase. Millions will lose their insurance. A report from the Urban Institute provides strong evidence that the ACA is directly lowering total healthcare spending, even as it expands coverage to unprecedented levels. The report showed that projected national spending on medical services, doctors, drugs, and devices between 2014 and 2019 is now $2.6 trillion less than what was projected when the ACA was passed in 2010. Under Dr. Price, doctors and insurance companies will become more wealthy but the losers will be low-income children/families who rely upon the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and Medicaid, and females who rely upon Planned Parenthood.
Regarding Betsy DeVos, Trump’s pick for the Secretary of Education, it’s hard to find anyone more passionate about the idea of steering public dollars away from traditional public schools. Money for early childhood education is going to shrink, or worse, we could see cuts across the board that will result in a drop in pre-K enrollment.
After federal funding for social programs is cut and Planned Parenthood loses its funding altogether, access to family-friendly services will be restricted. The number of unplanned and drug-affected pregnancies will increase. The percentage of neglected, abused and foster care children will increase. The percentage of children and adolescents with developmental disabilities, mental health disorders and substance abuse problems will increase.
Without any hope of common sense gun law legislation, gun violence (including suicides and murders) will likely increase. Meaningful criminal justice system reform isn't going to happen either. Instead, millions of established immigrant families will be broken up and deported. Tensions between immigrant families and conflicted law officers will escalate.
State and local governments, plus organizations like the AAP must awaken their inner warrior. We must coldly recognize that Trump (who numerous mental health experts believe has untreated Narcissism Personality Disorder and ADHD) will be an absolute disaster for the well-being of America’s children.
What should us pediatricians do? Read the Academy’s Blueprint and be prepared to fight, fight, fight!
1. American Academy of Pediatrics. Blueprint for Children: How the Next President Can Build a Foundation for a Healthy Future. 2016. Available at: www.aap.org/blueprint. Accessed January 3, 2017.
2. Marks KP, Vargas-Barón, E. Let’s create a national policy framework for healthy child development! The Hill. August 10, 2016. Available at: http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/healthcare/290944-lets-create-a-n... Accessed January 3, 2017.
3. Glied SA, Frank RG. Care for the Vulnerable vs. Cash for the Powerful — Trump’s Pick for HHS. NEJM December 21, 2016. Available at: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1615714 Accessed January 3, 2017.