PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING
ATS Urges Congress to Support Office of Climate Change and Health Equity and CDC Funding Increases
The American Thoracic Society signed onto a coalition letter urging the leadership of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to complete the appropriations process to provide the new Department of Health and Human Services Office of Climate Change and Health Equity with $6 million in fiscal year 2022. The new office would take the lead in improving HHS’s preparedness and response to the climate emergency by working with other divisions of HHS to ensure climate change health issues are incorporated into their missions and programs. OCCHE’s leadership will be needed to support proper coordination, policy development and review, and the vetting of HHS’s climate action plan.
In a separate letter signed onto by the ATS with the CDC Coalition, signatories urged Congressional leadership to include at least the House-passed level of $10.5 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s programs in any final fiscal year 2022 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies appropriations bill. The CDC Coalition is a nonpartisan coalition of organizations committed to strengthening our nation’s public health infrastructure and prevention programs. Due to years of underfunding, CDC programs have not received the funding that is needed to address myriad challenges through state and local public health and prevention activities.
Last Reviewed: November 2021
