Survey: Local Health Officials Worry About Climate Change
Local health directors throughout the country say they are unprepared to deal with public health problems associated with climate change, according to a survey conducted by the National Association of County and City Health Officials, George Mason University and the Environmental Defense Fund.
According to the study, nearly 70 percent of health directors say climate change has already occurred in their area. Sixty percent say they worry about "one or more serious public health problems" affecting their local communities in the next 20 years.
At the same time, most of these directors say they are unequipped to respond to possible public health problems. Eighty-two percent said they felt as though they lacked expertise to develop adaptation plans. And 77 percent said they needed additional resources to improve health departments' ability to deal with the issue.
It's not surprising that local health officials want to take on the health effects of global warming, given the attention this issue has received from the World Health Organization.
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