| U.S. Funding Is Insufficient to Address the Human Health Impacts of and Public Health Responses to Climate Variability and Change Kristie L. Ebi,1
John Balbus,2
Patrick L. Kinney,3
Erin Lipp,4
David Mills,5
Marie S. O’Neill,6,7
and Mark L. Wilson6,8
1ESS, LLC, Alexandria, Virginia, USA;
2Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC, USA;
3Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA;
4Department of Environmental Health Science, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA;
5Stratus Consulting, Inc., Boulder, Colorado, USA;
6Department of Epidemiology,
7Department of Environmental Health Sciences, and
8Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA Abstract
Background: The need to identify and try to prevent adverse health impacts of climate change has risen to the forefront of climate change policy debates and become a top priority of the public health community. Given the observed and projected changes in climate and weather patterns, their current and anticipated health impacts, and the significant degree of regulatory discussion underway in the U.S. government, it is reasonable to determine the extent of federal investment in research to understand, avoid, prepare for, and respond to the human health impacts of climate change in the United States. Objective: In this commentary we summarize the health risks of climate change in the United States and examine the extent of federal funding devoted to understanding, avoiding, preparing for, and responding to the human health risks of climate change. Discussion: Future climate change is projected to exacerbate various current health problems, including heat-related mortality, diarrheal diseases, and diseases associated with exposure to ozone and aeroallergens. Demographic trends and geophysical and socioeconomic factors could increase overall vulnerability. Despite these risks, extramural federal funding of climate change and health research is estimated to be < $3 million per year. Conclusions: Given the real risks that climate change poses for U.S. populations, the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and other agencies need to have robust intramural and extramural programs, with funding of > $200 million annually. Oversight of the size and priorities of these programs could be provided by a standing committee within the National Academy of Sciences. Key words: adaptation, climate change, health impacts, public health. Environ Health Perspect 117:857–862 (2009) . doi:10.1289/ehp.0800088 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 27 February 2009]
Address correspondence to K.L. Ebi, ESS, LLC, 5249 Tancreti Lane, Alexandria, VA 22034 USA. Telephone: (703) 304-6126. E-mail: krisebi@essllc.org We thank the reviewers for their thoughtful and helpful suggestions. All authors, either directly or indirectly, received partial funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for their research on Synthesis and Assessment Product 4.6. The authors received no funding support for their work on this manuscript. K.L.E. and D.M. are consultants working under contract with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , the U.S. EPA, and others. J.B. works for a nongovernmental organization representing > 500,000 members. P.L.K., E.L., M.S.O., and M.L.W. are employed in universities, three with funding support from the CDC, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and/or U.S. EPA. Received 11 August 2008 ; accepted 27 February 2009.
The full version of this article is available for free in HTML or PDF formats. |
