HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra’s Statement on Earth Day

Between the sandy depths of the ocean floor and the outermost layer of our atmosphere, our world gives us everything we need to thrive – the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food that nourishes us, and the foundations of our lifesaving medicines. As we celebrate Earth Day, it’s important to remember that our health and the health of our planet are inextricably linked – we owe it to our communities and future generations to take better care of our shared home. Across the country, we are seeing and feeling the impacts of climate change – with dangerous storms that batter communities, droughts that scorch our crops, and extremely high temperatures that push our bodies to their limits.

Climate change is characterized by deep inequities, it’s often the communities who have suffered from past injustices and who have the least access to health care that are hit the hardest. They deserve better. That’s why, at HHS and across the Biden-Harris Administration, we’re following through on our promises to do better by all of our neighbors, and our planet.

As Secretary, I established the Office of Climate Change and Health Equity to address the impact of climate change on the health of the American people, and I’m proud of the work they’ve done through the HHS’ Catalytic Program to connect safety net health care providers to the unprecedented opportunities created by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the most consequential piece of climate legislation in history. The Catalytic Program is helping connect the health care safety net – the institutions on the frontlines of responding to climate change-related hazards in our communities – to the opportunities created by the IRA for energy efficiency, sustainability, and resilience. This funding has the potential to transform the health sector, making it both better prepared for the health threats posed by climate change and decreasing its contributions to greenhouse gas emissions.

All of HHS has taken steps to support the sustainability and resilience of our communities. For example, today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Weather Service launched an Experimental HeatRisk tool that forecasts heat-related risks across the country. The tool will help individuals understand when hot weather will impact their community and how to protect themselves.

A key program when it comes to keeping families safe is the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program or LIHEAP. By assisting families with energy costs, LIHEAP keeps more homes cool in the summer and heated in the winter. One the communities most at risk from extreme heat and wildfire smoke is farmworkers, which is why I recently launched an initiative to use every available lever at HHS to safeguard farmworker health and wellbeing.

HHS will continue to be proactive and ambitious when it comes to protecting communities from climate change and environmental injustices. For example, HHS and DOJ initiated a civil rights enforcement action over a lack of wastewater disposal systems in Lowndes County, Alabama, where the majority of residents are Black and low income. We entered a Settlement Agreement that sets a path for equitable wastewater disposal and management systems in Lowndes County.

Throughout my career, I have worked to advance climate justice and build systems that will carry on this critical work to build a healthier nation for generations to come. You can count on me to continue to prioritize climate justice to ensure a healthier future for us all, on Earth Day and every other day.