Decarbonizing the U.S. Health Sector — A Call to Action

Abstract

Nowhere are the effects of climate change manifesting more clearly than in human health. Although many people consider climate change a looming threat, health problems stemming from it already kill millions of people per year.¹ It is well established that rising levels of greenhouse-gas emissions, which cause climate change, also cause or exacerbate myriad health problems associated with air pollution, severe weather, wildfires, extreme temperatures, changes in vector ecology, and disturbances in the food supply, among other stressors. Furthermore, these health threats are not evenly distributed or experienced across geographies or populations: they disproportionately affect the most vulnerable and disadvantaged groups. The climate crisis is thus a public health and equity crisis that, absent concerted action, will continue to pose significant threats to human health.