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FEDERALhearing transcript

High Impact

Senate Hearing: The Health and Economic Costs of Climate Change

Original title: UNDER THE WEATHER: DIAGNOSING THE HEALTH COSTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE

January 1, 2023

climate change public health healthcare costs federal budget economic policy

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The Frame

What this does

The hearing highlights the potential $8 trillion impact on the federal budget and household finances over the next decade due to health-related costs associated with climate change and fossil fuel use.

Who is mentioned in the record

Potentially affected actors named in the source documents. Mention is not a position.

American families

Families face potential financial strain from direct healthcare costs and indirect economic losses like reduced productivity.

Federal Government

The federal budget faces a projected $8 trillion burden over ten years due to health-related economic impacts.

What changed

Last recorded activity January 1, 2023.

What's next

Next step not available in the current record.

Summary

The Senate Budget Committee held a hearing to examine how climate change impacts public health and the resulting financial burden on the federal budget and American families. Experts and officials discussed the estimated $820 billion in annual U.S. healthcare costs linked to fossil fuel combustion.

Key Facts

The Senate Budget Committee held a hearing on April 26, 2023, regarding the health and economic costs of climate change.
Healthcare costs related to the combustion of fossil fuels are estimated at nearly $820 billion annually in the United States.
The projected economic and budgetary burden of these health costs is estimated at over $8 trillion over a ten-year period.
Costs include direct expenses like emergency room visits, doctor appointments, and prescription drugs, as well as indirect costs like lost productivity and missed school/work days.
The hearing is part of a series on the economic costs of climate change and its systemic risks to the federal budget.

Why It Matters

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the purpose of this hearing?

The hearing aims to explore the connection between climate change, public health, and the resulting economic and budgetary impacts on the federal government and families.

How much does climate-related health care cost the U.S. annually?

According to the Chairman's opening statement, health care costs related to the combustion of fossil fuels are estimated at nearly $820 billion per year.

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

Discoveries

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift90% confidence

Focus on Health-Climate Link

The committee is explicitly framing climate change as a direct budgetary and healthcare cost issue rather than solely an environmental one.

Senate Committee on the Budget

Connected Entities

personCarl J. Schramm“University Professor, Syracuse University”Map →

personKatelyn Moretti“Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine”Map →

personStephanie Smith“Member of the Maryland House of Delegates”Map →

personMichael Shellenberger“Founder & President, Environmental Progress”Map →

personMichael Greenstone“Professor of Economics, University of Chicago”Map →

personCharles E. Grassley“Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee”Map →

personSheldon Whitehouse“Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee”Map →

organizationSenate Committee on the Budget“Organizing body of the hearing”Map →

Sources

Open source document

www.govinfo.gov

Analysis Score

0–100

Significance75
How much this matters to a regular citizen
Controversy40
Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
Entertainment10
Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
Buzz20
Current news / social attention level

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