Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

March 21, 2023

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact

Jessica Mengistab

Program Manager, Climate & Clean Energy Advocacy

Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

jessica@envirn.org

(732) 336-1606

According to UN, Time Running Out to Address Worsening Climate Impacts

Switzerland — Yesterday, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its sixth report, considered one of its most conclusive reports to date. Formed in 1988, the IPCC is the internationally accepted authority on climate change with its findings endorsed by all member states of the UN and leading climate scientists. With a renewed call to action, the IPCC Synthesis Report highlights that stopping climate change is still possible but that our window of opportunity to do so is closing fast. António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, gave opening comments announcing  “The climate time bomb is ticking.” Secretary Guterres declared the IPCC report as “ a survival guide for humanity as it shows the 1.5° limit is achievable but it will take a quantum leap in climate action…our world needs climate action on all fronts: everything, everywhere, all at once.”

The IPCC announced there are opportunities to avoid further more devastating impacts only if meaningful action starts now. While we are already experiencing 1.1°C of warming, at 1.5°C, more people will be at risk from extreme heat and severe weather events. These impacts from warming will escalate dramatically when warming exceeds 1.5°C with increased human and health costs. Yesterday’s IPCC press event opened with a video noting “we are not on track to limit warming to 1.5°C or even 2.0°C.” 

Executive Director of the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments Katie Huffling, DNP, RN, CNM, FAAN issued the following statement: “We know that this is the IPCC’s final plan of action that we will receive while we still have the opportunity to limit global warming to 1.5°C. These next few years are critical to ensuring a livable future for generations to come. We can no longer escape the health impacts of climate change. The most vulnerable, those who have contributed the least to the problem are being hit the hardest. We know that particularly low-income communities, communities of color, and mid-low income nations are suffering already devastating effects from climate change. Any additional investment in fossil fuels amounts will continue to drive up the costs of global warming.

“Today, the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (ANHE) is calling on all policymakers, businesses, leaders and decision makers to embrace the report’s findings and pursue ambitious climate solutions driven by impacted communities that will improve human health. These solutions include phasing out fossil fuels, investing in renewable energy, and halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.” 

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The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments is the only national nursing organization focused solely on the intersection of health and the environment. The mission of the Alliance is to promote healthy people and healthy environments by educating and leading the nursing profession, advancing research, incorporating evidence-based practice, and influencing policy.

http://enviRN.org

“For the first time in over 10 years, the Environmental Protection Agency is reviewing regulatory standards on particulate matter or soot pollution.  A 60 day comment collection in the  Federal Register  is open to the public until March 28th. We believe it is essential that EPA hear from nurses who are seeing the health impacts of poor air quality in their personal and professional lives.  After updated standards were announced this year- science, public health, and environmental justice communities have been urging for stronger standards that will go further in protecting health and our planet. 

Comments from health professionals, particularly the trusted voices of nurses, hold tremendous weight in informing agencies and elected officials when making decisions that will impact our air, communities, and ultimately out health. Sign on with hundreds of other nurses and advocates who support healthy air protections by using this link!

If you would like assistance drafting a more in depth comment for submission utilize this Google form that will walk the submitter through a series of steps to produce a personal statement. This effectively helps in drafting a unique and passionate grasstops comment that is informed and includes pertinent health information. Again, you can also use The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments petition link here to add your name to this important movement to protect public health.”

February 9, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact
Jessica Mengistab
Program Manager, Climate & Clean Energy Advocacy
Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments
jessica@envirn.org
(732) 336-1606

Washington, D.C.– With the 118th Congress back in session, 42 nursing groups from across the nation have united to endorse the Joint Commitment Statement on Climate Change and Health. Shared with the 118th Congress today, the statement outlines a call to action addressed to the Biden Administration and federal agencies urging stronger protections for public health and calls for:

• Declaring climate change a public health emergency
• Cutting climate pollution 50% by 2030
• Enacting cleaner car standards and transitioning to zero emission vehicles
• Ensuring Justice40 implementation meets stated goals
• Mandating active decarbonization efforts across health systems and practice settings
• Requiring a whole government approach to addressing the climate crisis
• Promoting climate health education for nurses to prepare for climate related events
• Supporting federal dollars for researching climate change and health 

While the statement is addressed to the Biden Administration, nurses are sharing their demands with the 118th Congress to ask for their support through strong policies to protect public health. 

Nurses treat each patient regardless of their background, ethnicity, race, gender or political affiliation. It is with these same ethical principles that nurses are bound, through a professional code of conduct, to recognize that the climate health emergency demands widespread action and collaboration. Climate change impacts communities in rural, suburban, and urban areas. The 42 nursing groups endorsing the statement are from a variety of practice settings and specialties located throughout the country in hospitals, clinics, schools, workplaces, and nursing homes. Nurses continue to see the effects of climate change impacting patients across the lifespan and will continue to urge the Biden Administration and the 118th Congress to enact policies which save lives, advance environmental justice, and improve public health. 

“The health consequences of climate change are among the most urgent public health and health equity crises of the 21st century. The National League for Nursing recognizes the importance of educating current and future nurses across the spectrum of higher education for climate change-informed practice and policy leadership. Nurses must be prepared to anticipate and mitigate climate-triggered adversities such as food shortages, water contamination, and interruptions to public transit and emergency services as they fulfill their calling to deliver patient-centered, culturally sensitive care.”

-President and CEO Beverly Malone, PhD, RN, FAAN, National League for Nursing (NLN) 

“Climate change has a profound effect on the health and safety of our Latino community in the U.S. and abroad. In fact, a majority of Latinos in the U.S. live in three states- California, Texas and Florida- that are currently experiencing the effects of climate change. As nurses and trusted community partners, we must prepare our workforce to be able to address the diverse health challenges associated with climate change to ensure the health and safety of future generations.”

-President Adrianna Nava, PhD, MPA, MS, RN, National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN) 

“ACHNE members are committed to designing and advancing climate health curricula and guidelines for nurses and other health professional partners. We support targeted reform to decarbonize the health sector and mitigate the effects of climate change, which will promote human health and planetary health. We welcome opportunities to engage with Congress in finding actionable climate health policy and system solutions to protect public health.”

-President Krista Jones DNP, MSN, RN, PHNA-BC, ELAN Fellow, Association of Community Health Nursing Educators (ACHNE) 

“Climate change directly impacts the physical and mental health of children and adolescents in all aspects of their lives. Because children are more vulnerable to the effects of climate change, it’s imperative that pediatric-focused APRNs and our nursing colleagues are educated on the health effects of climate change to mitigate the harm to children and improve long-term health outcomes.” 

-President Jennifer Sonney, PhD, APRN, PPCNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN, National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners (NAPNAP) 

“As nurses, delivering a unified message to our new Congress is critical. Everyday nurses encounter patients experiencing the health impacts from climate change. Climate change is threatening life as we know it. We want Congress to know nurses are here to engage in policy discussions to ensure equitable care for everyone occurs in the face of climate impacts.” 

-Katie Huffling, DNP, RN, CNM, FAAN, Executive Director of the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (ANHE)

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The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments is the only national nursing organization focused solely on the intersection of health and the environment. The mission of the Alliance is to promote healthy people and healthy environments by educating and leading the nursing profession, advancing research, incorporating evidence-based practice, and influencing policy.

http://enviRN.org

For Immediate Release

February 8, 2023

Contact:

Jessica Mengistab

Program Manager, Climate & Clean Energy Advocacy

Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

Jessica@envirn.org

(732) 336-1606

ANHE Official Statement on the 2023 State of the Union Address

Washington, D.C.- “The State of the Union is strong” proclaimed President Biden after delivering a hopeful address to the American public.  Throughout his address the President detailed commitments to building a stronger country through expansion of infrastructure, access to life-saving prescription medications, replacement of harmful lead service lines, and the roll out of programs under the Inflation Reduction Act that will address the climate crisis.  “The climate crisis doesn’t care if you’re in a red or blue state”, remarked President Biden, recounting numerous visits to states after natural disasters heightened by climate change.

In response to the State of the Union address, the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (ANHE) Executive Director Katie Huffling, DNP, RN, CNM, FAAN released the following statement:

“Nurses remain committed to working with President Biden and his Administration on strategies to protect public health in the wake of climate change.  Since the beginning of his Administration the President has made known his intentions of championing climate action and clean energy investments that will address devastating effects of climate change and protect the public from harmful pollutants.  The time to continue those actions is now.

“It is an indisputable fact that the climate crisis is a public health emergency that demands swift and strong action. President Biden must use all of his existing executive authority and direct his Administration to deliver solutions that create jobs, advance environmental justice, protect our health, and deliver on his promise to cut deadly pollution by 50% by 2030.”

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About The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments is the only national nursing organization focused solely on the intersection of health and the environment. The mission of the Alliance is to promote healthy people and healthy environments by educating and leading the nursing profession, advancing research, incorporating evidence-based practice, and influencing policy.

http://enviRN.org

For Immediate Release
February 7th, 2023

Contact:

Melanie Schimpf
California Nurse Organizer 
Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments
melanie@envirn.org

Sacremento, CA –Late last week the oil industry’s referendum to overturn Senate Bill 1137 qualified for the 2024 ballot. SB 1137 was signed into law by Governor Newsom in September 2022 in order to create a 3,200 ft buffer between toxic oil and gas drilling and the places where people live, learn, work, and play. Shortly after Governor Newsom signed this bill into law, the oil industry filed a referendum to overturn this critical public health protection. In response to the referendum, the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments’ Executive Director Katie Huffling, DNP, RN, CNM, FAAN issued the following statement: 

“SB 1137 is essential to protecting the nearly 3 million Californians who live next to oil and gas drilling and are currently being poisoned. Communities that live near these operations are at greater risk of suffering from adverse health effects, including preterm births, cardiovascular disease, respiratory illnesses, and cancer.

“Big Oil spent millions of dollars and led a deceitful campaign in order to obtain the signatures needed. Now that the referendum has qualified for the 2024 ballot, California voters will decide whether to implement the measure in 2024. Meanwhile, the oil industry will continue to poison vulnerable communities, primarily low-income people of color. In the midst of a climate crisis in which we need to transition away from fossil fuels as soon as possible to ensure a livable future, Big Oil continues to sacrifice human lives and the planet for profit. 

“Across California, nurses will continue to advocate for an end to neighborhood oil drilling. We will support the frontline communities and environmental organizations that have been fighting for decades for the right to breathe clean air.” 

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About The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments is the only national nursing organization focused solely on the intersection of health and the environment. The mission of the Alliance is to promote healthy people and healthy environments by educating and leading the nursing profession, advancing research, incorporating evidence-based practice, and influencing policy.

http://enviRN.org

For Immediate Release
January 6, 2023

Contact:

Jessica Mengistab
Program Manager, Climate & Clean Energy Advocacy
Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments
Jessica@envirn.org
(732) 336-1606

Washington, D.C.- This morning The Environmental Protection Agency released proposed updates to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Fine Particulate Matter.  Executive Director of The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments, Katie Huffling issued the following statement:

“Nurses are disappointed in EPA’s refusal to implement necessary limits on deadly particulate matter pollution.  Both science and health data show that stronger limits at the levels of 8 µg/m3 for the annual standard and 25 µg/m3 for the 24-hour standard are necessary to protect vulnerable populations and prevent further health harms to the public. 

“Every day in our practice, nurses are witnessing and treating conditions brought on by particulate matter pollution.  From asthma exacerbations, COPD, and heart disease, to preterm birth and  birth defects nurses are seeing the real health consequences of this under regulated pollutant.  EPA’s failure to set stronger standards on particulate matter is a missed opportunity to protect public health and foster long overdue health equity measures greatly needed by overburdened communities.  

“Retaining the 24-hour standard and not adjusting to the recommended 25 µg/m3 leaves already overburdened communities subject to varying spikes of known, harmful pollution.  By failing to address these unhealthy spikes, we are prone to replicate and further entrench environmental injustices through continued deadly air exposures. 

“Across the country, nurses will continue to advocate for healthy air, our patients, and our communities and will continue to urge EPA to strengthen the final standards and to finalize this proposal no later than August 2023.”

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About The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments is the only national nursing organization focused solely on the intersection of health and the environment. The mission of the Alliance is to promote healthy people and healthy environments by educating and leading the nursing profession, advancing research, incorporating evidence-based practice, and influencing policy.

http://enviRN.org

President Biden and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) just took a critical step towards cutting methane and other harmful pollutants from the oil and gas industry – but there is more work to be done to ensure that we are confronting the climate crisis head-on, and protecting the health and safety of communities across the country.

Cutting methane pollution from the oil and gas industry is the quickest, most cost effective way to slow the rate of climate change and protect public health. The EPA’s updated draft rule improves upon many of the standards in the original draft rule released by EPA last year, including by requiring regular monitoring at all well sites, but it does not go far enough. We need the Biden administration to use all of its authority to quickly enact strong solutions for pollution to meet the President’s climate, public health, and justice commitments.

**Feel free to personalize our drafted comment attached above and tailor with your voice and your personal, work, or community experiences. Share this comment form widely within your networks as well!

For Immediate Release

December 20, 2022

Contact:

Jessica Mengistab

Program Manager, Climate & Clean Energy Advocacy

Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

Jessica@envirn.org

(732) 336-1606

EPA’s Heavy Duty Trucks Rule- The Beginning of  Protecting Public Health 

from Harmful Vehicle Emissions

Washington, D.C.- Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the final rule to reduce harmful Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) emissions from heavy-duty vehicles. In response to the final rule, Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments Executive Director Katie Huffling said:

“EPA’s final rule is an overdue step to curb NOx pollution from freight trucks and other large vehicles. Although trucks make up less than 10 percent of vehicles on the road, they contribute to the majority of hazardous air pollutants that formulate deadly particulate matter and ground level ozone or smog.  Pollutants like NOx are linked to a host of respiratory and cardiovascular health complications and communities situated closest to high traffic routes experience the highest health risks. 

“Nurses are urging EPA to accelerate momentum from today’s rule and follow through on their commitment to propose the next round of emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles early next year. Stronger standards are essential for the necessary reduction of health harming pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions from trucks and will drive a nationwide transition to zero-emission vehicles that will also improve air quality.”

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About The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments is the only national nursing organization focused solely on the intersection of health and the environment. The mission of the Alliance is to promote healthy people and healthy environments by educating and leading the nursing profession, advancing research, incorporating evidence-based practice, and influencing policy.

http://enviRN.org

For Immediate Release

December 14, 2022

Contact:

Jessica Mengistab

Program Manager, Climate & Clean Energy Advocacy

Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments

Jessica@envirn.org

(732) 336-1606

Legislation Introduced to Expand US Approach to Mental Health 

and Resilience to the Effects of Climate Change 

Washington, D.C.- Today Senate Democrat, Ed Markey (MA) re-introduced bipartisan legislation to support mental health in the wake of the growing climate crisis.  The legislation, H.R. 9201, The Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act (CMWRA), is an urgently needed new policy that will direct CDC to provide small planning grants and larger implementation grants to community coalitions to strengthen the capacity for mental wellness and resilience among all adults and youth.  The legislation seeks to reduce the current epidemic of mental health and psychosocial problems and prevent future ones by using a public health approach to build population-level mental wellness and resilience for all types of adversities, including those generated by the climate emergency.  The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments are joined by over 115 national, regional, state, and local mental health, human services, climate, social justice, education, faith, and other organizations in endorsing CMWRA. 

The need for the new policy is evident and urgent. In 2021 alone, more than 1 in 5 American adults experienced a diagnosed mental illness. Residents nationwide are experiencing accelerating toxic stresses due to job, income, and housing insecurity, poverty, and other struggles. Another cause of the rise in mental distress is that 40 percent of Americans lived in a county impacted by a major natural disaster in 2021.  

There are nowhere near enough mental health professionals to assist all of the people who experience mental and behavioral health problems today. This gap will only grow over time as the climate emergency worsens. Community-based initiatives that help the entire population strengthen their capacity for mental wellness and resilience as they assist each other with difficulties will go a long way in addressing these issues.  

“Nurses thank Senator Ed Markey for introducing the Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act in the Senate,” said Katie Huffling, Executive Director, Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments. ”Mental health impacts need to be considered and amplified when having discussions regarding loss and damage associated with climate change.  Nurses understand the importance of the proactive and holistic approach that is the foundation of mental wellness and resilience.  The rapidly worsening climate crisis requires multidisciplinary solutions and the legislation introduced by Senator Markey will go a long way in addressing community needs in the face of this public health threat.”

In addition to ANHE, over 115 national, state, and local organizations have endorsed H.R. 9201. National endorsers include the: American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association, National Association of Social Workers, National Alliance on Mental Health, American Public Health Association, Mental Health America, National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors, Children’s Environmental Health Network, the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, National Council for Mental Wellbeing, American Lung Association, Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice, American Association on Health and Disability, The Kennedy Forum, Health Care Without Harm, and many others.

Specifically, H.R. 9201, The Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act will:

• Authorize the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to establish a grant program to expand existing community-based initiatives and form new ones that use a public health approach to enhance population-level capacity to prevent and heal mental health problems generated by persistent disasters and toxic stresses. 
• Appropriate $30,000,000 for fiscal years 2023 through 2027 to fund small planning grants of up to $15,000 to help community initiatives get organized, and larger program grants of up to $4 million to support and help expand existing community wellness and resilience initiatives (note: this total is likely to change when the legislation is reintroduced in 2023).
• Target community-based initiatives that will involve a wide and diverse network of grass-roots and neighborhood leaders, and non-profit, private, and public organizations. 
• Encourage community initiatives to develop their own age and culturally appropriate strategies to engage all adults and youth in enhancing and sustaining mental wellness and resilience, with high-risk individuals and those with pathological symptoms given special attention as part of the larger community effort. 
• Encourage strategies that use evidence-based, evidence-informed, promising, and/or indigenous practices to engage residents in strengthening existing protective factors, and forming new ones, to help all adults and youth push back against traumatic stressors, maintain mental wellness, and rapidly recover when impacted by toxic stresses or disasters. 
• Individualized mental health treatment will support the community-based wellness and resilience building activities and assist people who still cannot function, or are at risk of harming themselves or others.

**Read the full act HERE. ANHE members are encouraged to contact their House and Senate members to urge them to co-sponsor the legislation and push for its rapid enactment.