Recognizing that climate change poses a growing threat to public health and necessitates coordinated action to mitigate its impacts and safeguard the health and well-being of all people in the United States.

Summary

Recognizes climate change as a major public health threat and documents how extreme weather and rising temperatures cause illness, injury, displacement, and death—especially among people with disabilities and other underserved communities. Calls for sustained federal support, clear adaptation guidance, reliable local data, and coordination across health, emergency preparedness, and related federal functions to make health care systems resilient and reduce the health care sector’s emissions.

• Declares climate change a major public health threat with wide scientific support.
• Documents higher disaster-related risks for people with disabilities and other underserved communities.
• Identifies frontline and essential workers (agriculture, construction, delivery, manufacturing, warehousing) as disproportionately affected.
• Highlights the health care sector’s roughly 8.5% share of U.S. emissions and the value of energy and infrastructure investments.
• Calls for sustained federal support and clear adaptation guidance for health care organizations and workers.
• Calls for locally relevant data and coordination across HHS functions and other federal agencies.
• Emphasizes both physical infrastructure resilience and psychological resilience for health care staff and patients.
• Frames resilience investments as producing health, sustainability, and operational savings.