Sec. 641. Sense of Congress on public health and climate change
373 words·~2 min read·
/bill/117/hr/1512/ih/section-641·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
It is the sense of Congress that— climate change is real; human activity significantly contributes to climate change; climate change negatively impacts health; climate change disproportionately impacts communities of color and low-income communities; and the Federal Government, in cooperation with international, State, Tribal, and local governments, concerned public, private, and Native American organizations, and citizens, should use all practicable means and measures— to assist the efforts of public health and health care professionals, first responders, health care systems, States, the District of Columbia, territories, municipalities, and Native American and local communities to incorporate measures to prepare public health and health care systems to respond to the impacts of climate change; to ensure— that the Nation’s public health and health care professionals have sufficient information to prepare for and respond to the adverse health impacts of climate change; the application of scientific research in advancing understanding of— the health impacts of climate change; and strategies to prepare for and respond to the health impacts of climate change; the identification of communities and populations vulnerable to the health impacts of climate change, including infants, children, pregnant women, the elderly, individuals with disabilities or preexisting illnesses, low-income populations, and unhoused individuals, and the development of strategic response plans to be carried out by public health and health care professionals for those communities; the improvement of health status and health equity through efforts to prepare for and respond to climate change; and the inclusion of health impacts in the development of climate change responses; to encourage further research, interdisciplinary partnership, and collaboration among stakeholders in order to— understand and monitor the health impacts of climate change; improve public health knowledge and response strategies to climate change; identify actions and policies that are beneficial to health and that mitigate climate health impacts; and develop strategies to address water-, food-, and vector-borne infectious diseases and other public health emergencies; to enhance preparedness activities, and health care and public health infrastructure, relating to climate change and health; to encourage each and every community to learn about the impacts of climate change on health; and to assist the efforts of developing nations to incorporate measures to prepare public health and health care systems to respond to the impacts of climate change.