How Climate Change Impacts Human Health and Health Care Infrastructure
The U.S. health care system has a massive carbon footprint, accounting for about 8.5 percent of total nationwide greenhouse gas emissions. If health care were its own country, it would be the fifth-largest greenhouse gas emitter on the planet. While the health care sector is a major contributor to carbon emissions, health care systems are also impacted structurally and financially by the impacts of a changing climate. Climate change has been identified as one of the biggest global health threats of the 21st century, and climate change-induced disruptions threaten the infrastructure and operations of health care systems, whose mission is to promote wellness and keep people healthy. This article explores the impacts climate change has on human health and on U.S. health care infrastructure and operations.
Impacts on Human Health
The health and wellbeing of Americans are already being impacted by climate change, and the adverse health consequences are projected to get worse as the planet continues to get warmer. Climate change affects many of the social and environmental determinants of health—clean air, safe drinking water, sufficient food, and secure shelter, which can cause illnesses, injuries, and death. Climate change-induced extreme heat, droughts, wildfires, heavy rainfall, floods, storms, and sea level rise can all negatively affect our health. Climate change can also affect the transmission of infectious diseases and increase stresses that affect mental health and well-being.
While all Americans are at risk of experiencing adverse climate-related health outcomes, some populations are disproportionately vulnerable. Among the most vulnerable to health-related threats are older adults, children, low-income communities, and communities of color. When looking at the full range of threats from climate change along with other environmental exposures, these groups are the most exposed, most sensitive, and the least likely to have the necessary individual and community resources to prepare for and respond to health threats. The COVID-19 pandemic has only increased this vulnerability, especially among low-income people and people of color.
Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause about 250,000 additional deaths per year globally. Despite these challenges, huge opportunities exist for taking action to reduce these risks and help communities build capacity to reduce health vulnerabilities to climate change and improve climate resilience. As the community institutions tasked with protecting public health, hospitals have a critical role to play in these efforts.
Impacts on Health Care Infrastructure and Operations
Beyond direct impacts on human health, increases in the frequency and magnitude of extreme weather events caused by climate change create risks that impact health care facilities’ ability to operate and to deliver safe, effective, and efficient care. Hospitals depend on critical community services like electricity, clean drinking water, food service delivery, and waste disposal, all of which are vulnerable to power and infrastructure disruptions.
Extreme weather events can also cause major financial losses. Of 158 hospital evacuations that took place between 2000 and 2017, nearly 75% were for climate-sensitive events. Recently in California, nearly 250 hospitals lost power simultaneously in intentional power outages because of wildfire prevention measures, and climate change is projected to make wildfires more frequent. These disruptions can result in significant financial losses for hospitals, worse patient outcomes, and ultimately, higher costs for patients.
Other recent climate-related disasters have highlighted the need for disaster preparedness tools for North American health care systems. Hurricane Sandy in 2013, Hurricane Katrina in 2002, and Eastern Canada’s 1998 ice storm created challenges for health care systems that in some cases exceeded capacity to handle the disruptions. These challenges included damage to infrastructure, limited access to essential services, increased patient loads, and issues with maintaining supply chains, such as those for essential drugs. Descriptions like these further hinder the ability of clinicians to provide care, and they present an opportunity to proactively prepare rather than reacting to each individual climate-related crisis.
Taking Action on Climate Change
While the health care sector is on the front lines of climate change, with its large carbon footprint and mission to promote health and wellness, it is well-positioned to be a critical part of the solution. Thousands of hospitals and health systems are already working to address their climate footprint, taking action to reduce their climate impacts and improve resilience to climate stressors. Stay tuned for upcoming articles where we will further explore the health care sector’s climate impacts, strategies health care organizations are implementing to mitigate climate change and build resilience, and the role hospitals can take in the carbon neutral futures of their communities, even as they expand their operations, tend to their bottom lines, and continue to provide high-quality care.
