Many young adults are failing to launch into healthcare literacy
Dave Pearson|July 27, 2026|Health Exec|Care Delivery
Young adults have little trouble talking about their health when they’re face to face with a doctor. But a distressingly large portion of this demographic is at a loss when it comes to scheduling appointments, figuring out whether or not they need medical care and navigating the healthcare system.
So found University of Michigan researchers when they polled a nationally representative cohort of 1,550 parents with at least one child between the ages of 18 and 25.
Almost 1 in 6 of the respondents indicated their offspring in that age bracket doesn’t handle any basic healthcare responsibilities on their own
Despite the self-reported failure to impart such important skills, more than half the parents rated themselves highly for preparing their child to take responsibility for their health
The findings spotlight “an important transition that many families may not be fully preparing for,” contributing research scientist Sarah Clark, MPH, tells Michigan Medicine.
Other findings of interest from the poll:
- Parents tend to be more concerned about their young adult’s lifestyle habits than their chronic health conditions.
- More than half the field identified excessive screen time as a current or potential health problem for their young adult, while roughly four in 10 cited stress, insufficient sleep, unhealthy eating habits and lack of physical activity.
- Two in five parents view the cost of maintaining a healthy lifestyle as a problem for their young adult child.
Turning 18 “changes who is legally responsible for healthcare decisions, but healthcare independence doesn’t happen overnight,” Clark says. “Young people need practice talking to providers, setting up appointments, learning about insurance and managing their own care.”
The full survey report is available for downloading here
Dave Pearson
Dave P. has worked in journalism, marketing and public relations for more than 30 years, frequently concentrating on hospitals, healthcare technology and Catholic communications. He has also specialized in fundraising communications, ghostwriting for CEOs of local, national and global charities, nonprofits and foundations
