Advancing and integrating climate and health policy in the United States: Insights from national policy stakeholders

The health harms of climate change are numerous and far-reaching. For example, extreme heat exacerbates cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, mental health conditions, and pregnancy and childbirth risks [1]. These health harms disproportionately affect disadvantaged populations, such as low-wealth communities and communities of color [2,3]. Additionally, climate disasters impede healthcare services while increasing demand for these services [4,5].

Equally, addressing climate change would greatly benefit public health. Cutting fossil fuel emissions could save hundreds of thousands of lives in the U.S. through air quality benefits alone [6]. Climate solutions would also improve health through increased physical activity and healthier diets [7,8], and these improvements would reduce healthcare costs [9]. Growing recognition of these crucial intersections between climate and health solutions have spawned new interdisciplinary frameworks linking these topics, such as One Health and Planetary Health.