In an unprecedented collaboration, more than 200 health care journals published an editorial calling for immediate action to cut emissions, restore nature, protect health, and support developing countries in an effort to tackle the “catastrophic harm to health” from climate change. Co-authored by 19 people, including the editors in chief of 17 health journals based around the world, the editorial was published simultaneously in 233 international journals on September 6, 2021.
United States Addresses the Climate Crisis; HHS Establishes Office of Climate Change and Health Equity
On August 30 2021, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced it is establishing the Office of Climate Change and Health Equity (OCCHE) in response to the Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. This is the first office of its kind at the national level to address climate change and health equity. The Office’s mission is to protect vulnerable communities who disproportionately bear the brunt of pollution and climate-driven disasters, such as drought and wildfires, at the expense of public health.
