Jan 15, 2026 | Originally published in Medium
By: Kathi Earles, MD, MPH, DABOM
Imagine a nation where the quality of the air you breathe and the water you drink are dictated by the size of your bank account. Under the current administration’s dismantling of environmental protections, this dystopian vision edges closer to reality, sacrificing the health of all communities on the altar of corporate gain.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), once a guardian of public health, has been systematically weakened. The EPA established its Office of Environmental Justice in 1992 after decades of environmental atrocities, including the deliberate placement of hazardous waste facilities, landfills, and polluting industries in low-income, predominantly Black and Brown communities. That office was shuttered earlier this year by Trump’s EPA administrator, Lee Zeldin… READ THE FULL ARTICLE>
Dr. Kathi A. Earles is an Executive Medical Liaison for Novo Nordisk, Inc. Previously, she was the Assistant Director of the Morehouse School of Medicine Pediatrics Residency program where she was instrumental in developing the program from its inception. Dr. Earles is a 2025 Climate and Health Equity Fellow with the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health.
The views of the author do not necessarily reflect those of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health or its members.