✨ Latest Highlights

Cities for Smart Surfaces: For the past year, APHA has partnered with the Smart Surfaces Coalition on the Cities for Smart Surfaces project, along with the National League of Cities, Metropolitan AME and many others. This groundbreaking project brings together six APHA affiliates from across the country to explore the potential of smart surfaces to improve public health in urban environments. Learn more.

Sign letter urging Governors to take action on extreme heat preparedness: APHA is part of the Alliance on Heat Resilience and Health, a national coalition of health and environmental organizations working to elevate action on extreme heat. We are circulating a Call to Action urging Governors to lead on extreme heat preparedness, particularly in the absence of strong federal coordination. We invite your organization to join us by signing on to this letter to help amplify the public health voice and support urgent, coordinated action to protect communities from the health risks of rising temperatures. The letter will be delivered during the National Governors Association Annual Meeting in July. The deadline to sign on is July 7th.

🔎 What's New

Why is extreme heat a public health issue?

Extreme heat is one of the most dangerous climate-related threats we face. Here’s why it matters:

• 🧑‍⚕️ Extreme heat kills more people in the U.S. than all other weather-related disasters combined. And it’s getting worse each year due to rising temperatures and urban heat islands.
• 🌍 Fossil fuel-driven climate change is responsible for 37% of global heat-related deaths. Communities with fewer resources are hit hardest.
• 💸 Heat causes an estimated $100 billion in economic losses each year, primarily due to lost productivity. It also drives $1 billion annually in direct healthcare costs.
• 🏥 Each summer, heat leads to 235,000 ER visits and over 56,000 hospital admissions. Most of these are preventable with the right policies and preparedness.
• 🧾 Yet only 37% of Americans recognize heat waves as a serious health threat.- APHA/ EcoAMerica Survey

Extreme heat is a significant and escalating public health crisis in the U.S., claiming more lives annually than hurricanes, floods and tornadoes combined. This alarming trend is worsening due fossil fuel-driven climate change, which accounts for 37% of heat-related deaths worldwide.  

The impacts of extreme heat are broad, straining infrastructure and disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations such as older adults, children, individuals with chronic illnesses, low-income communities, people experiencing homelessness, etc... In 2023 alone, extreme heat accounted for at least 2300 deaths in the United States, which many experts consider to be a significant underestimate. Furthermore, heat illness causes $1 billion in healthcare costs annually in the U.S., along with $100 billion total cost to the U.S. economy, primarily driven by lost productivity. With heat-related mortality projected to increase substantially due to climate change, it is imperative that health systems, public health agencies, and society at-large rapidly develop the policies and infrastructure necessary to build resilience against extreme heat.

There is a need for increased public awareness about the dangers of extreme heat and the importance of implementing preventative measures like investing in heat-resilient infrastructure and committing to policies that address the root causes of climate change.

Additional APHA Resources in Extreme Heat

• Extreme Heat Can Impact Our Health in Many Ways [Fact Sheet]

• Differences in Heat-related Mortality by Citizenship Status: United States 2005-2014 [Fact Sheet]

• APHA joined Arsht Rock’s Extreme Heat Resilience Alliance in 2023. EHRA empowers more effective and informed heat resilience leadership at the local, national and global level.

For more information about our extreme heat and health work, contact Shweta Arya.