To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to declare a public health emergency in connection with health risks associated with climate change, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMs. Dexter (for herself, Ms. Velázquez, Ms. Norton, Ms. Ansari, …
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to declare a public health emergency under existing federal law (Section 319 of the Public Health Service Act) specifically for health risks associated with climate change. The bill establishes through congressional findings that climate change has driven or worsened more than half of all public health emergencies declared in the past decade, including extreme weather events and infectious disease outbreaks.
Who Benefits and How
Federal, state, and local public health agencies benefit by gaining access to emergency funding, authorities, and resources typically activated during public health emergencies. Climate-vulnerable communities, particularly those in areas prone to extreme heat, flooding, or wildfire, would receive enhanced public health protections and emergency services. Emergency response organizations and climate health research institutions would gain increased funding opportunities and priority status for their work addressing climate-related health threats.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The federal government must allocate emergency resources and funding to support the public health emergency declaration. The HHS Secretary is mandated to issue this declaration, which may require ongoing renewals and administrative oversight. Indirectly, fossil fuel and carbon-intensive industries may face increased regulatory scrutiny, as establishing climate change as an official public health crisis creates a stronger legal and policy foundation for future emissions regulations or climate-related requirements.
Key Provisions
- Mandates an official public health emergency declaration by HHS for climate change health risks
- Establishes legislative findings linking climate change to 66 extreme weather emergencies and infectious disease spread over the past decade
- Activates emergency authorities under Section 319 of the Public Health Service Act, including data sharing, cross-agency coordination, and resource mobilization
- Declares climate change "the most significant health threat of the 21st century" based on World Health Organization assessments
- Calls for building a climate-resilient public health system to protect vulnerable communities
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to declare a public health emergency in connection with health risks associated with climate change
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Establish climate change as a national public health emergency to unlock federal emergency authorities, resources, and cross-agency coordination"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Public health agencies and departments (access to emergency funding and authorities)
- Climate-vulnerable communities (enhanced public health protections)
- Emergency response organizations (additional resources and coordination)
- Climate and environmental health research organizations (increased funding and priority)
Likely Burden Bearers
- Federal government (must allocate emergency resources)
- HHS Secretary (mandatory declaration requirement)
- Potentially fossil fuel and carbon-intensive industries (if emergency measures include regulatory action)
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Health and Human Services
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Public health emergencies driven or exacerbated by climate change, including extreme weather events and transmission of infectious diseases
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology