Scientists and public health experts agree that climate change will affect the health of Pennsylvania, the nation and the planet in a wide variety of ways.

 

Examples include:

• Increased rates of asthma and heat-related deaths.

• Increased occurrences of extreme weather that will lead to injury, accidents, and in the worst cases - deaths.

• Increased rates and geography of vector-borne illnesses, from Zika to Lyme disease.

• Vulnerable populations such as children, elderly, people of low socioeconomic status will suffer the most.

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For these reasons and many more, it’s crucial that we take steps as quickly as possible to tackle climate change and do our part to protect the public’s health.

 

The good news is that while there are grave threats facing the planet from climate change, we have the tools and technology at our finger tips to be able to address this challenge—but time is of the essence.

 

Given this, the strategy that will be implemented by the Philadelphia Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) will be the following:

 

1. Ensure that public health professionals and public health messaging are front-and-center in the Pennsylvania coalition’s efforts to tackle climate change.

2. Ensure that decision makers are hearing from health professionals and their concern about climate change.

3. Mobilizing and expanding the network of public health organizations, officials and experts in Pennsylvania who can speak to the issue of the threats posed by climate change.

 

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