Climate Change
At its May meeting this year, the board of trustees of the Washington
State Medical Association voted to support the "No on 2117" campaign,
pursuant to
WSMA policy adopted in 2018
that specifically supports investments in clean energy via a fee on
large suppliers of CO2-emitting products. The policy was adopted by the
WSMA House of Delegates in response to a then-pending ballot initiative
establishing a cap-and-invest system, a precursor to
Senate Bill 5126
from 2021, which created the Climate Commitment Act.
Initiative 2117 is also in direct opposition to WSMA policy that
acknowledges climate change as a critical public health issue. The
WSMA's House of Delegates, since 2016, has adopted policies that urge
the association to work on solutions that both reduce pollution and
address the issue of climate change to promote healthier, sustainable
communities.
As noted in WSMA policy, climate change is a critical public health
issue:
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Potential effects of climate change on human health include higher
rates of respiratory and heat-related illness, increased prevalence of
vector-borne and waterborne diseases, food and water insecurity, and
malnutrition. Persons who are elderly, sick, or poor are especially
vulnerable to these potential consequences.
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The WSMA supports educating the medical community on the potential
adverse public health effects of global climate change and
incorporating the health implications of climate change into the
spectrum of medical education, including topics such as population
displacement, heat waves and drought, flooding, infectious and
vector-borne diseases, and potable water supplies.
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We recognize the importance of physician involvement in policymaking
at the state, national, and global levels, and support efforts to
search for novel, comprehensive, and economically sensitive approaches
to mitigating climate change to protect the health of the public; and
recognize that whatever the etiology of global climate change,
policymakers should work to reduce human contributions to such
changes.
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We encourage physicians to adopt programs for environmental
sustainability in their practices, share these concepts with their
patients and their communities, and to serve as role models for
promoting environmental sustainability.
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We encourage physicians to work with local and state health
departments to strengthen the public health infrastructure to ensure
that the global health effects of climate change can be anticipated
and responded to more efficiently.
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We support epidemiological, translational, clinical, and basic science
research necessary for evidence-based global climate change policy
decisions related to health care and treatment.
The potential health impacts of I-2117
A new white paper from Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility,
Initiative 2117: A Risk to Our Health – An Analysis of the Threats to
Health Posed by I-2117, evaluates the significant health impacts of Initiative 2117 and the
repeal of Washington’s Climate Commitment Act.