By Anjali Sharma
UNITED NATIONS – World health agency on Friday released a major report at COP30 in Belém, Brazil warned that climate change is fueling a global health emergency, killed over half a million people each year through extreme heat and threatening hospitals worldwide,.
The special report on health and climate change, published by the WHO and the Brazilian Government, warned that 1 in 12 hospitals could face climate-related shutdowns.
It called for urgent action to protect health systems in a rapidly warming world.
Belém Health Action Plan, a flagship COP30 initiative launched on Thursday putting health at the centre of climate policy.
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the climate crisis is a health crisis not in the distant future, but here and now,”.
“This special report provides evidence on the impact of climate change on individuals and health systems, and real-world examples of what countries can do and are doing to protect health and strengthen health systems.”
Global temperatures are above 1.5°C. The report finds that 3.3 to 3.6 billion people live in areas highly vulnerable to climate impacts, while hospitals face a 41 per cent higher risk of damage from extreme weather compared to 1990.
The report noted that without rapid decarbonization, the number of health facilities at risk could double by mid-century.
The health sector contributes 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, underscoring the need for a swift transition to low-carbon, climate-resilient systems.
The report highlights huge gaps in health adaptation planning:
Only 54 per cent of national health adaptation plans assess risks to health facilities.
Fewer than 30 per cent consider income disparities.
Just 20 per cent take gender into account.
Less than 1 per cent includes people with disabilities.
WHO said that progress has been made the number of countries with multi-hazard early warning systems doubled between 2015 and 2023 but coverage remains uneven, especially in least developed countries and small island states.
It added momentum a coalition of over 35 philanthropies today pledged $300 million to accelerate solutions at the intersection of climate and health.
The Climate and Health Funders Coalition which includes Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Gates Foundation, IKEA Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, and Welcome will back innovations, policies and research on extreme heat, air pollution and climate-sensitive diseases, as well as strengthen health systems and data integration. Find out more here.
The coalition’s inaugural funding effort supports the Belém Health Action Plan and aims to deliver “no-regret” interventions that save lives now.
The hottest on record and temperatures set to remain near historic highs, experts warned that failure to act risks catastrophic consequences for human health.
Ethel Maciel, COP30’s special envoy for health and one of the architects of the Belém Health Action Plan. She stressed that climate change is no longer a distant threat – it is reshaping health systems now.
“Then, how do we prepare our health units, our hospitals, our structures for these extreme events that will happen with increasing frequency? And how can we provide training and capacity-building for health professionals so that they can face these extreme events that will be caused by what we are experiencing in these climate changes,” she said.
“One example here in Brazil, was last year’s flooding in Rio Grande do Sul, [which triggered] the largest dengue epidemic in history, driven by these climate changes. So, it is not something for us to think about in the future; it’s happening now. So, thinking about how to adapt our system is urgent.”
Ms. Maciel outlined three pillars of the plan:
She said monitoring to integrate climate and health data, enabling forecasts of heat-related health demand and better reporting of climate-linked cases.
Resilient systems and training so health professionals can identify and treat impacts such as dehydration or cardiac stress.
Research and innovation to develop heat-resistant medicines and vaccines, cut pollution in health supply chains, and expand renewable energy use.
She warned that implementation is critical in the Amazon, where deforestation could unleash unknown pathogens. “We have pathogens that we do not yet even fully understand.”
Ms. Maciel urged leaders to ensure the plan “does not become just another paper and another very beautiful declaration, but that does not happen in practice.”
