Question.3853 - Op-Ed Second Draft: Climate Change Worsens Health InequitiesIts Time for Urgent Action Intended Media Outlet: The Seattle Times Over the last few decades, the Northwest Pacific relished lush forests and temperate climate, but following the rise in global temperature, the effects of climate change are not unavoidable, wherein what once a safe haven for natural beauty and sustainability is experiencing a battleground for public health with a?surge in land experiencing fluctuations heating patterns causing heatwaves to worsening wildfires, the residents of Washington state are bearing the brunt of this environmental crisis (Parry et al., 2019). Unfortunately, it is our most vulnerable populationslow-income communities, people of color, marginalized communities, and indigenous groupswho are disproportionately suffering from these climate-related health threats; although governmental interventions made aware, the possibility of avail and accessibility is bleak - the growing disparities in climate-related health outcomes must be addressed now if we are to build a healthier, more equitable healthcare (Cox, 2021). While considering the scope of operations for a health professional, I've experienced firsthand the impact of how climate change exacerbates existing inequities, seeing a sharp decline in the flow of lower economic communities seeing health rather than choosing over-the-counter drugs. Communities already facing economic hardships or systemic discrimination are further pushed towards vulnerability due to lack of resources to adapt to extreme weather conditions or access necessary healthcare services; for instance, during last years record heatwave, several lower-income residents in Seattle were unable to afford air conditioning or find cooling centers, leading to a spike in heat-related illnesses and hospitalizations. These are not isolated incidents; they are symptoms of a larger issue where climate change acts as a threat multiplier, worsening existing health challenges for marginalized populations (Colangelo, 2024). Considering the insights from Public Health Seattle & King County by Jen Dev?(2024), climate change tends to cast a significant burden on public health in King County, Washington, with threatening increases in emergency department (ED) visits for climate-related illnesses. For example, King County recorded an escalation in asthma-related ED visits, rising from 880 per 100,000 residents in 2021 to over 1,050 per 100,000 in 2022, implying a growing preponderance of respiratory issues aggravated by worsening air quality and longer allergy seasons due to climate shifts (Dev, 2024). In areas like the 98022 zip code, asthma-related ED visits are particularly severe, with nearly 2,500 visits per 100,000 residents, reflecting the compounding influences of environmental exposure in densely populated or economically disadvantaged neighborhoods; the people who are already in a vulnerable position are further exposed to risky environment in a hidden manner from mainstream media coverage (Dev, 2024). However, heat-related illness disproportionately affects vulnerable populations; Dev's (2024) research implies that Black residents experience heat-related ED visits at roughly double the rate of Hispanic and White residents, and four times the rate of Asian residents, highlighting the role of environmental inequities in health outcomes. With this understanding of the scenario, the disparities in the public health sector emphasize the need for a more appropriate data-sets-driven targeted approach and a mitigation plan to respond to public health, particularly when it comes to King County, wherein the climate and health dashboards provide valuable perspicuity for addressing these inequities by revealing how factors like race, income, and age influence vulnerability to climate-induced health issues. In addition to asthma and heat-related illnesses, the data depicted by Dev (2024) also show that allergy-related ED visits rose sharply, with South King County experiencing nearly 98 visits per 100,000 residents in 2022, up from just over 30 in 2019; such information could aid policing in King County from 2020-2025 Strategic Climate Action Plan, which leverages heat-mapping projects to identify urban heat islands areas with limited tree cover and high pavement density that retain heat longer, thus contributing to increased health risks. With the intent of identifying these disparities, King County can implement targeted interventions, such as increasing green spaces, improving housing resilience, and providing more accessible healthcare services to mitigate the health impacts of climate change for its most affected communities. Climate change tends to cast an?immense burden on not just an environmental issue but?rather a public health crisis, wherein the datasets from the Washington State Department of Health depict there is a drastic dip in the quality of air we breathe with immense pollution flowing in from wildfires, lower income areas and communities of color more impacted by the changes, as they reside around the pollution sources or in less resilient housing, making them more vulnerable to respiratory conditions such as asthma. Indigenous communities and other native communities who live across the coastal regions face the additional threat of displacement due to rising sea levels, putting their cultural and physical health at risk deepening the inequalities. Another study from American Public Health Association implied that children growing up are developing health implications in the early development stages, while the entire community is exposed to flooding, extreme heat, or poor air quality further compounding to generations of implications, leaving marginalized communities in a cycle of poor health outcomes and limited economic opportunities (Colangelo, 2024). So, what can we do? While the federal government has made some strides through initiatives and other interventions like the Inflation Reduction Act to reduce health disparities, and demanding the local and state governments must also take more aggressive action to mitigate these disparities. Wherein by identifying the issue from the grassroots will aid in targeting the policies for targeted communities to establish a strong bond between government and society, as seen in Seattle, which is expanded towards establishing optimized cooling infrastructure and also providing subsidies for low-income accessibility to access air conditioning units, the underlying intent was to make health accessible to all the vulnerable sections. In order to establish equitable health care, it is necessary to tackle the root causes of disparities; since it is integrated, each factor is directly proportional to the other, and every stakeholder needs to be included to have their voices heard. Also, investing in renewable energy, improving housing infrastructure, and creating green jobs for underserved populations are key steps to creating a more equitable society; considering the real world in Washington, weve already seen success with programs like the Clean Energy Transformation Act, which aims to reduce carbon emissions while prioritizing communities disproportionately affected by pollution (Colangelo, 2024). References Colangelo, S. A. (2024). Bridging Silos: Environmental and Reproductive Justice in the Climate Crisis. Cox, S. (2021).?The path to a livable future: A new politics to fight climate change, racism, and the next pandemic. City Lights Books. Dev, J. (2024, February 21). Does climate change affect your health? Short answer yes | Public | Courier-Herald. Courier-Herald. https://www.courierherald.com/life/does-climate-change-affect-your-health-short-answer-yes-public/ Fallin, M. (2022).?Diagnosing the Future: Translating Climate Change into Public Health?(Doctoral dissertation, Northwestern University). Parry, L., Radel, C., Adamo, S. B., Clark, N., Counterman, M., Flores-Yeffal, N., ... & Vargo, J. (2019). The (in) visible health risks of climate change.?Social Science & Medicine,?241, 112448.

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