Maryland Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate publishes press release in response to the 2023 Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 15, 2023

Contact:

Rebecca Rehr Maryland League of Conservation Voters

443-668-7467

rrehr@mdlcv.org

New Report: As wildfire smoke, infectious diseases, and intense heat increase, health professionals call for immediate climate action and an end to fossil fuel use

A new report from the London-based medical journal The Lancet details the cascading health problems in the U.S. and around the world stemming from climate change and fossil fuel use, prompting Maryland health professionals to call for urgent action to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and resultant health risks and inequities. Key findings from the Lancet Countdown on Health & Climate Change Brief for the United States, which is supported by a diverse group of health experts from more than 80 organizations nationwide, include:

• In 2020, fossil fuel combustion accounted for approximately 41.5% of all premature deaths attributable to human-caused fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the U.S.
• 2022 was the warmest year ever recorded in the U.S. Average U.S. summer temperatures in 2022 were 2.3°F (1.3°C) warmer as compared to 1986-2005.
• U.S. infants under the age of 1 experienced a 61% increase in exposure to heatwaves, meaning that each infant, on average, was exposed to an additional 3.2 heatwave days per year from 2013 to 2022 compared to 1986-2005.
• In 2022, $81 billion in potential income was lost in the U.S. from reduced labor due to extreme heat. 45% of the losses occurred in the construction industry, 32% in the service sector, 15% in manufacturing, and 8% in agriculture.
• The ability of mosquitoes in the U.S. to transmit the dengue virus had more than doubled in the period from 2013 to 2022 compared to 1951–1960. 

A focus throughout the report is how climate change is having disparate impacts, concluding “fossil fuel pollution and climate change are fundamental issues of economic, racial, and intergenerational justice.”

“Maryland is a small state but mighty when it comes to public health. Our state is home to leading Federal health agencies, trailblazing state and local health departments, the headquarters of many public health nonprofits, and top academic training programs,” said Suparna Navale, President of the Maryland Public Health Association. “This year’s Lancet Countdown U.S. Brief emphasizes climate and environmental justice as key to achieving health equity, and Maryland lawmakers should keep these principles front and center in the upcoming legislative session.” 

"This year’s Lancet Countdown U.S. Brief recommends policy action that accelerates our transition to clean and renewable energy sources, which will result in immense health benefits through improved air quality and by limiting climate change,” said Surili Sutaria Patel, Vice President at Metropolitan Group and Maryland LCV Education Fund Board Member. "With the most ambitious short term emissions reduction goals, Marylanders could see $296-667 million annually in additional health benefits when we reach 60% emissions reductions in 2031, mostly due to improved health outcomes as a result of decreasing harmful air pollution. Maryland is poised to protect its residents from the worst harms of climate change and resultant air and water pollution if it releases a strong Climate Plan at the end of this year. Investing in a clean energy future is essential for public health and the environment."

“As a nurse midwife who practiced for six years in Prince George’s County, I have seen firsthand pregnant women struggling to breathe when they come into my office on the poor air quality days that are becoming more common as the climate changes,” said Katie Huffling, Executive Director of the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments. “Maryland has been a leader in passing bills like the Climate Solutions Now Act, and the findings of this year’s Lancet Countdown only support continued strong leadership from lawmakers and the administration.” 

“It’s time to focus responsibility on the fossil fuel industry for the direct health harms they cause from pollution, including respiratory, cardiac, neurologic, and cancer related morbidity and mortality, and for their role in the resulting climate crisis which has led to illness, injury and death from heat events, floods, droughts, fire, and increased spread of infectious diseases,” said Gwen DuBois, President of Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility. “This year’s U.S. Brief calls for rapidly phasing out fossil fuel use and ending fossil fuel subsidies. Policy solutions that are guided by public health principles would replace fossil fuels with renewable and clean energy and involve frontline communities in crafting solutions, resulting in significant lives saved and greater health equity.”

“Children are particularly susceptible to the adverse health impacts resulting from our changing climate. They suffer disproportionately during adverse weather events, are less adapted to heat stress, and have increasing exposures to infectious disease. The multiple stresses of climate change are taking a toll on the mental health of children and teens as well,” said Michael Ichniowski, Chairperson for the Environmental Health and Climate Change Committee of the Maryland Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. “The focus of the Countdown changes from year to year, but the implication for Maryland's children is consistent: a healthy climate improves child health.”

Maryland Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate