Public Health Issues: Climate Change Health Impacts

Benchmark – Policy Brief
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Policy Health Issue
Climate change is currently the biggest environmental issue facing human health. Its impacts include rising sea levels, warming temperatures, increasing intensity and frequency of extreme weather conditions, and precipitation changes (Ebi & Hess, 2020). As the planet warms, oceans expand, and sea level rises. Droughts and floods become more intense and frequent. Hurricanes, heat waves, and wildfires also become more severe, as evidenced by the unprecedented 2020 wildfire season in the western US (Salas et al., 2020). These changes threaten human health by limiting the availability of safe water, food, and air. They collectively lead to serious injuries, respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, water-borne and vector-borne diseases, premature deaths, and lingering mental health problems like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Ebi & Hess, 2020).
The severity of these health risks depends on the ability of climate change policy to address these effects. Impacts vary based on the location, individual’s sensitivity to health threats, and the degree of exposure to climate change impacts (Ebi & Hess, 2020). Populations at high risk of climate change health impacts include children, low-income communities, pregnant women, the elderly, occupational groups like first responders and construction workers, people with disabilities, people in certain locations, and individuals with underlying health conditions (Environmental Protection Agency, n.d.). This issue occurs at local, state, and national levels. The adverse health effects caused by climate change have called for the advocacy, support, and implementation of the Climate Action Now Act: - a policy that directs the US government to follow the guidelines and scientific targets of the Paris agreement on climate change. It also proposes strategies for meeting targets and protecting public health from the devastating effects of this environmental issue.
Problem Statement
Climate change intimidates the ability of the healthcare system to provide safe, efficient, and effective care to all Americans (Salas et al., 2020). The existing healthcare system has major weaknesses that would worsen if climate change effects on public health intensify. That said, health care policymakers need to integrate a climate lens as they formulate interventions to minimize this environmental issue and its associated health effects. Integrating a climate lens means evaluating health risks influenced by climate change and incorporating them into policies and other measures to improve public health (Salas et al., 2020).
Suggestions for Addressing the Health Issue
Research has shown that climate change will ultimately affect everyone’s health to some extent. Vulnerable groups such as older adults, children, and people with chronic conditions would suffer the most (American Public Health Association, n.d.). That is why it is imperative to take action now to minimize the health impacts of climate change. Key recommendations include planting trees in urban areas, prepping homes for extreme weather, and ex...