FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 28, 2026
Contact: Ashley Sullivan, ashley.sullivan@weact.org, 1 (917) 837-1183
Siham Zniber, szniber@earthjustice.org, 1(814)386-4234
ADVOCATES FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY TAKE TO THE HILL TO ADDRESS CLIMATE IMPACTS AS A PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS, HURTING VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES FIRST AND WORST
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Last week, climate and environmental justice advocates alongside health and medical experts joined lawmakers for a press conference, one-on-one meetings, and a first-of-its-kind roundtable to urgently move forward policies needed to address climate impacts as a public health crisis. The press conference [video recording here] included Senators Markey and Whitehouse, and Representative Matsui, as well as advocates Leslie Fields from WE ACT for Environmental Justice and Meisei Gonzalez from Greenlatinos. This was followed by a roundtable featuring medical professionals, community leaders, and decision-makers including Senators Booker and Markey, as well as Representatives Lee, Schrier, Ruiz, Tlaib, and Dexter. The advocacy week reflects a united front to push back against the most deregulatory, polluter-friendly administration of the last 50 years, and to provide community perspectives and solutions to guide tangible policy actions.
Senator Ed Markey shared in his press conference remarks, “Climate is on the ballot. The health and well-being and the protection of families is on the ballot. And we deserve a world free of pollution, free of profiteering, and free of fear. We know the stakes, but we have the solutions.”
Representative Doris Matsui shared in her press conference remarks, “Good climate policy is good public health policy, because our climate, our environment, our communities, and our health, are inseparable. Good climate policy protects communities, strengthens our economy, and leaves a healthier planet for the next generation.”
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse shared in his press conference remarks, “We are seeing climate change moving from the science department, where it has been for decades, into the economics department. Landing in people’s homes, in premium increases, in non-renewals by the insurance companies.”
Ranjani Prabhakar, Legislative Director, Earthjustice Action, said, “The climate crisis isn’t a distant threat. It’s showing up in emergency rooms, schools, outdoor workplaces, and homes that can’t afford to keep the AC on. We can’t afford half-measures anymore. We need every tool we have to rein in polluters and hold accountable every system and policy choice that enables them.”
This effort comes days after unprecedented, dangerous air quality from uncontrollable Canadian wildfire smoke and a sweltering heat dome during the July Fourth weekend that put nearly half of the U.S. population under heat alerts. Extreme heat is the deadliest impact of climate change, but it does not impact everyone equally. Black New Yorkers are three times as likely to die from heat-related illnesses as white New Yorkers, which reflects national trends. Extreme heat can lock in toxic air pollution, exacerbating health conditions like respiratory and cardiovascular disease. Low-income neighborhoods, Indigenous groups, and communities of color are more exposed to air pollution leading to higher rates of asthma, lung disease, heart attacks, pre-term births, and preventable deaths.
Leslie Fields, Chief Federal Officer at WE ACT for Environmental Justice shared, “The climate crisis is a public health crisis, and people of color and those who have less are facing the greatest consequences every day. Coping with extreme heat will only become harder, and yet, our communities are often left to endure inefficient, unsafe, costly homes that worsen health issues. We need to match the gravity and danger of these threats with appropriate resources for communities who need it most. Congress must make sure life-saving programs like the WAP and LIHEAP are fully staffed and funded so that everyone can lead healthy and safe lives in the face of extreme heat.”
Meisei Gonzalez, Climate Justice & Clean Air Advocate at GreenLatinos, said, “Latinos accounted for 23% of heat-related deaths in Maricopa County last year while making up 52% of Arizona’s construction workforce. The people building our communities are risking their health in dangerous heat and then returning home to rising energy costs. That’s why we need strong worker protections and programs like LIHEAP, because no family should have to choose between paying their utility bill and staying safe during extreme heat.”
Advocates shared research-backed, community-led resources and recommendations, including WE ACT’s Healthy Homes First Principles for Equitable Building Decarbonization, which can help guide policy decisions that address connected indoor health hazards in combination with growing climate threats in the process of decarbonizing homes and buildings.The principles and conversations underscored how popular, effective, and bi-partisan relief programs like the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) are critical, but severely underfunded and under attack. Advocates emphasize that these programs are lifelines for millions of people, and necessary interventions for communities suffering with skyrocketing energy costs.
While these issues accelerate, the Trump administration is pursuing a series of sweeping clean air rollbacks that will increase harmful pollution and worsen climate impacts, all while exempting more than 180 industrial facilities from requirements under the Clean Air Act. The No Passes for Polluters Act, introduced in the Senate by Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse and Adam Schiff – with a House companion introduced at the HEAL press conference by Rep. Matsui – would restrict a President’s ability to unilaterally grant these kinds of exemptions.
The HEAL coalition will continue to collaborate with key lawmakers and with communities to ensure every measure is taken to address climate impacts as public health threats. We must take the appropriate actions to save lives and protect all communities across the country.
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The Health Equity and Environment Action League (HEAL) is a coalition of environmental and health experts that seeks to bring together diverse partners in the health and environment spaces in pursuit of a shared mission: Addressing climate change as a public health issue and ensuring everyone has the right to clean air, water, and a healthy environment free from toxic threats. Members include Earthjustice Action, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Power Coalition for Equity and Justice, WE ACT for Environmental Justice, Physicians for Social Responsibility, Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, Children’s Environmental Health Network, Duwamish River Community Coalition, New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance, Connecticut Coalition for Economic and Environmental Justice, The Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health, Center for Oil and Gas Organizing, and others.