This document discusses the impact of climate change on public health, particularly among vulnerable populations such as the elderly, children, and pregnant women. It also provides suggestions for addressing the health issue and its impact on the healthcare delivery system.
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Running head: CLIMATE CHANGE1 CLIMATE CHANGE Name of Student Institution Affiliation
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CLIMATE CHANGE2 CLIMATE CHANGE Description of the public health issue Climate change is a serious issue affecting the United States of America. Experts have described the issue as a national security threat. Latest facts indicate that humanity is responsible for the shift in weather systems that have resulted in a rise in temperatures and chaotic weather. Research has also shown that information about the impact of burning gas and oil was already known to oil companies from the 1970s but they nevertheless ignored it. Climate change is currently a top health risk globally. In the United States, climate change health issues majorly affect the elderly, children and pregnant women. The public health issue occurs at both the local, state and national levels. Research byOspina (2018) Shows that climate change has a major impact on vulnerable populations such as the young and the individuals with chronic diseases, the elderly and low-income communities. Problem statement Climate change has become a significant health challenge for different populations in the United States. However, the impact of the challenges posed by climate change differs among various populations. Major health issues linked to climate change include waterborne disease, mental health disorders, and foodborne disease, stroke, cardiovascular disease, cancer, respiratory allergies, and Asthma. People aged above 65 accounts for above 60% new diagnosis and 70% of all cancer deaths in the United States. Climate change health issue is, therefore, more detrimental to the elderly population. Suggestions for addressing the health issue Due to the multiplicity and complex nature of the health issue associated with climate change, efforts should mitigation efforts should be made at the local, state and national levels.
CLIMATE CHANGE3 These mitigation efforts can be through policies or other interventions. For example, public health agencies should on regular occasions issue safety guidelines and alerts during heat waves. In addition, these health problems can be addressed through mitigation of the underlying causes of climate change through environmental mitigations. These mitigations include the development of policies aimed at prioritizing human health and safety through the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. At the local level, more green spaces should be created to help reduce extreme heat. Creation of more green spaces would also help reduce carbon from the atmosphere; therefore, alleviating the impact of high temperatures. Additionally, these can also be managed through the reduction of transportation emissions. These may be done at local, state and national levels through the improvement and promotion of public transportation and reduction of vehicles on the road. Transportation emissions can also be reduced by offering incentives on electric vehicles to encourage more users to use them. Incentives can be provided at the national level. The effective implementation of these strategies would require the inclusion of various stakeholders such as government officials at the state, local and national levels, and representatives from the health and climate departments. With these strategies, the health impacts of climate change among the elderly population in the USA would be managed(Ma et al., 2014). Impact on the healthcare delivery system Recent statistics have ranked US health care as the most expensive in the world. To break it down, the estimated cost of health care per person is about $10000 per year. In the fiscal year 2018, the United States government spent about $1.1 trillion on healthcare. Of this amount, about $583 billion was spent on Medicare, a health insurance program for people aged 65 years and above(Chiang & Kao, 2017). On the same note, Cancer among elderly patients in the US costs
CLIMATE CHANGE4 the government about $118.4 billion in indirect mortality costs and $74 billion in direct costs (Chastek et al., 2012). Based on these statistics, it is therefore evident that the cost of healthcare for the elderly population is a huge burden to the healthcare system of the United States of America. The implementation of the suggestions analyzed above would be a major step towards the reduction of the amounts of money health issues related to climate change. Reduction or elimination of such costs would, therefore, minimize the cost and increase the efficiency of the healthcare delivery system. .
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CLIMATE CHANGE5 References Chastek, B., Harley, C., Kallich, J., Newcomer, L., Paoli, C. J., & Teitelbaum, A. H. (2012). Health care costs for patients with cancer at the end of life.Journal of oncology practice,8(6S), 75s-80s Chiang, J. K., & Kao, Y. H. (2017). Predictors of high healthcare costs in elderly patients with liver cancer in end-of-life: a longitudinal population-based study.BMC cancer,17(1), 568. Climate Institute. (2019). Beyond Environmental Change: How Climate Change Affects Public Health. Retrieved from http://climate.org/beyond-environmental-change-how-climate- change-affects-public-health/ Hayes, K., Blashki, G., Wiseman, J., Burke, S., & Reifels, L. (2018). Climate change and mental health: Risks, impacts and priority actions.International journal of mental health systems,12(1), 28. Ma, X., Wang, R., Long, J. B., Ross, J. S., Soulos, P. R., Yu, J. B., ... & Gross, C. P. (2014). The cost implications of prostate cancer screening in the Medicare population.Cancer,120(1), 96-102. Ospina, C. (2018). Beyond Environmental Change: How Climate Change Affects Public Health. Retrieved from http://climate.org/beyond-environmental-change-how-climate-change- affects-public-health/