The U.S. health care system is responsible for an estimated 10 percent of national greenhouse gas emissions, which cause extreme weather events and contribute to worse health outcomes. Providers, suppliers, and other actors in the health sector have a role to play in curbing emissions and ensuring they are appropriately prepared for increasing climate-related events that will inevitably disrupt operations. Efforts to curb emissions or prepare the health infrastructure have yet to match the potential consequences, but ultimately such steps will improve health outcomes and provide cost-saving opportunities throughout the pipeline.

Beginning in March 2022, Committee on Ways and Means Chair Richard E. Neal sent out a request for information (RFI) to hospitals, health systems, and other facility-based health providers to better understand how climate events have impacted the health sector, as well as steps the health care industry is taking to address its role in mitigating the climate crisis.