I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3271 

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and implement a national strategic action plan and program to assist health 

professionals and systems in preparing for and responding to the public 

health effects of climate change, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 17, 2021 

Mr. CARTWRIGHT (for himself, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. SCHNEIDER, 

Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. JONES, Mr. BOWMAN, Ms. 

NORTON, Ms. PINGREE, Ms. BARRAGA ́N, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. KHANNA, 

Mr. TONKO, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. MENG, Mr. CASTEN, Ms. JACKSON LEE, 

Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. COHEN, Ms. STRICKLAND, and Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to 

develop and implement a national strategic action plan 

and program to assist health professionals and systems 

in preparing for and responding to the public health 

effects of climate change, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Climate Change Health 

5 Protection and Promotion Act of 2021’’. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 3271 IH

1 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON PUBLIC HEALTH AND CLI2 MATE CHANGE. 

3 (a) FINDINGS.—The U.S. Global Change Research 

4 Program Climate and Health Assessment states that— 

5 (1) the impacts of human-induced climate 

6 change are increasing nationwide; 

7 (2) rising greenhouse gas concentrations result 

8 in increases in temperature, changes in precipitation, 

9 increases in the frequency and intensity of some ex10 treme weather events, and rising sea levels; 

11 (3) these climate change impacts endanger our 

12 health by affecting our food and water sources, the 

13 air we breathe, the weather we experience, and our 

14 interactions with the built and natural environments; 

15 and 

16 (4) as the climate continues to change, the risks 

17 to human health continue to grow. 

18 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con19 gress that— 

20 (1) climate change poses threats to the United 

21 States and globally through its impacts on society, 

22 the economy, the physical environment, and national 

23 security; 

24 (2) climate change health threats are growing 

25 in scale and severity; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (3) climate change disproportionately affects 

2 people of the United States who are economically 

3 disadvantaged, belong to communities of color, or 

4 have other social and health vulnerabilities; 

5 (4) climate change impacts anywhere in the 

6 world can threaten the health of people of the 

7 United States through such pathways as infectious 

8 disease pandemics, climate-driven migration and dis9 placement, and social, economic, and political disrup10 tion; and 

11 (5) the Federal Government, in cooperation 

12 with international, State, Tribal, and local govern13 ments, nongovernmental organizations, businesses, 

14 and individuals, should use all practicable means 

15 and measures— 

16 (A) to assist the efforts of public health 

17 and health care professionals, first responders, 

18 health care systems, States, the District of Co19 lumbia, territories, municipalities, and Native 

20 American and local communities to incorporate 

21 measures to prepare public health and health 

22 care systems to respond to the impacts of cli23 mate change; 

24 (B) to ensure— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (i) that the Nation’s public health and 

2 health care professionals have sufficient in3 formation to prepare for and respond to 

4 the adverse health impacts of climate 

5 change; 

6 (ii) the application of scientific re7 search in advancing understanding of— 

8 (I) the health impacts of climate 

9 change; and 

10 (II) strategies to prepare for and 

11 respond to the health impacts of cli12 mate change; 

13 (iii) the identification of communities 

14 and populations vulnerable to the health 

15 impacts of climate change, including in16 fants, children, pregnant women, the elder17 ly, individuals with disabilities or pre-exist18 ing illnesses, low-income populations, com19 munities of color, those who experience en20 vironmental injustices, and unhoused indi21 viduals; 

22 (iv) the development of strategic re23 sponse plans to be carried out by public 

24 health and health care professionals for the 

25 communities described in clause (iii); 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (v) the improvement of health status 

2 and health equity through efforts to pre3 pare for and respond to climate change; 

4 and 

5 (vi) the inclusion of health impacts in 

6 the development of climate change re7 sponses; 

8 (C) to encourage further research, inter9 disciplinary partnership, and collaboration 

10 among stakeholders in order to— 

11 (i) understand and monitor the health 

12 impacts of climate change, including men13 tal health impacts; 

14 (ii) improve public health knowledge 

15 and response strategies to climate change; 

16 (iii) identify actions and policies that 

17 are beneficial to health and that mitigate 

18 climate health impacts; and 

19 (iv) develop strategies to address 

20 water-, food-, and vector-borne infectious 

21 diseases and other public health emer22 gencies; 

23 (D) to enhance preparedness activities, and 

24 health care and public health infrastructure, re25 lating to climate change and health; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (E) to encourage each and every commu2 nity to learn about the impacts of climate 

3 change on health; and 

4 (F) to assist the efforts of developing 

5 countries to incorporate measures to prepare 

6 public health and health care systems to re7 spond to the impacts of climate change. 

8 SEC. 3. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS. 

9 Nothing in this Act limits the authority provided to 

10 or responsibility conferred on any Federal department or 

11 agency by any provision of any law (including regulations) 

12 or authorizes any violation of any provision of any law (in13 cluding regulations), including any health, energy, envi14 ronmental, transportation, or any other law or regulation. 

15 SEC. 4. NATIONAL STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN AND PRO16 GRAM. 

17 (a) REQUIREMENT.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

19 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

20 Health and Human Services (referred to in this Act 

21 as the ‘‘Secretary’’), on the basis of the best avail22 able science, and in consultation pursuant to para23 graph (2), shall publish a national strategic action 

24 plan and establish a climate and health program to 

25 ensure that public health and health care systems 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 3271 IH

1 are prepared for and can respond to the impacts of 

2 climate change on health in the United States and 

3 other countries. 

4 (2) CONSULTATION.—In developing or making 

5 any revision to the national strategic action plan and 

6 program, the Secretary shall— 

7 (A) consult with the Director of the Cen8 ters for Disease Control and Prevention, the 

9 Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

10 Agency, the Director of the National Institutes 

11 of Health, the Undersecretary of Commerce for 

12 Oceans & Atmosphere, the Administrator of the 

13 National Aeronautics and Space Administra14 tion, the Director of the Indian Health Service, 

15 the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of 

16 State, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the 

17 National Environmental Justice Advisory Coun18 cil, the heads of other appropriate Federal 

19 agencies, Tribal governments, and State and 

20 local government officials; and 

21 (B) provide meaningful opportunity for en22 gagement, comment, and consultation with rel23 evant public stakeholders, particularly rep24 resentatives of at-risk populations, environ25 mental justice communities, Tribal commuVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:44 Jun 15, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3271.IH H3271

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 3271 IH

1 nities, public health organizations, and sci2 entists. 

3 (b) ACTIVITIES.— 

4 (1) NATIONAL STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

6 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec7 retary, acting through the Director of the Cen8 ters for Disease Control and Prevention, and in 

9 collaboration with other Federal agencies as ap10 propriate, shall, on the basis of the best avail11 able science, and in consultation with the enti12 ties described in subsection (a)(2)(A), publish a 

13 national strategic action plan under subsection 

14 (a)(1) to guide the climate and health program 

15 and assist public health and health care profes16 sionals in preparing for and responding to the 

17 impacts of climate change on public health in 

18 the United States and other countries, particu19 larly developing countries. 

20 (B) NATIONAL STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN

21 COMPONENTS.—The national strategic plan 

22 under subsection (a)(1) shall include an assess23 ment of the health system capacity of the 

24 United States to address climate change, in25 cluding— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (i) identifying and prioritizing commu2 nities and populations vulnerable to the 

3 health impacts of climate change; 

4 (ii) identifying the link between envi5 ronmental injustice and vulnerability to the 

6 impacts of climate change and prioritizing 

7 those who have been harmed by environ8 mental and climate injustice; 

9 (iii) providing outreach and commu10 nication aimed at public health and health 

11 care professionals and the public to pro12 mote preparedness and response strategies; 

13 (iv) providing for programs across 

14 Federal agencies to advance research re15 lated to the impacts of climate change on 

16 health; 

17 (v) identifying and assessing existing 

18 preparedness and response strategies for 

19 the health impacts of climate change; 

20 (vi) prioritizing critical public health 

21 and health care infrastructure projects; 

22 (vii) providing modeling and fore23 casting tools of climate change health im24 pacts, including local impacts, where fea25 sible; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (viii) establishing academic and re2 gional centers of excellence; 

3 (ix) providing technical assistance and 

4 support for preparedness and response 

5 plans for the health threats of climate 

6 change in States, municipalities, terri7 tories, Indian Tribes, and developing coun8 tries; and 

9 (x) developing, improving, integrating, 

10 and maintaining domestic and inter11 national disease surveillance systems and 

12 monitoring capacity to respond to health13 related impacts of climate change, includ14 ing on topics addressing— 

15 (I) water-, food-, and vector16 borne infectious diseases and climate 

17 change; 

18 (II) pulmonary effects, including 

19 responses to aeroallergens and toxic 

20 exposures; 

21 (III) cardiovascular effects, in22 cluding impacts of temperature ex23 tremes; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (IV) air pollution health effects, 

2 including heightened sensitivity to air 

3 pollution; 

4 (V) harmful algal blooms; 

5 (VI) mental and behavioral 

6 health impacts of climate change; 

7 (VII) the health of migrants, ref8 ugees, displaced persons, and vulner9 able communities; 

10 (VIII) the implications for com11 munities and populations vulnerable 

12 to the health effects of climate 

13 change, as well as strategies for re14 sponding to climate change within 

15 such communities; 

16 (IX) Tribal, local, and commu17 nity-based health interventions for cli18 mate-related health impacts; 

19 (X) extreme heat and weather 

20 events, including drought; 

21 (XI) decreased nutritional value 

22 of crops; and 

23 (XII) disruptions in access to 

24 routine and acute medical care. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (2) CLIMATE AND HEALTH PROGRAM.—The 

2 Secretary, acting through the Director of the Cen3 ters for Disease Control and Prevention, and in col4 laboration with other Federal agencies, as appro5 priate, shall ensure that the climate and health pro6 gram established under this section addresses pri7 ority health actions, including by doing each of the 

8 following: 

9 (A) Serve as a credible source of informa10 tion on the physical, mental, and behavioral 

11 health consequences of climate change for the 

12 United States population and globally. 

13 (B) Track data on environmental condi14 tions, disease risks, and disease occurrence re15 lated to climate change. 

16 (C) Expand capacity for modeling and 

17 forecasting health effects that may be climate18 related. 

19 (D) Enhance the science base to better un20 derstand the relationship between climate 

21 change and health outcomes. 

22 (E) Identify locations and population 

23 groups at greatest risk for specific health 

24 threats and effects, such as increased heat-re25 lated illnesses and injuries, degraded air and 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 3271 IH

1 water quality, food or water-related infections, 

2 vector-borne illnesses, pulmonary and cardio3 vascular effects, mental and behavioral health 

4 effects, and food, water, and nutrient insecu5 rity. 

6 (F) Communicate the health-related as7 pects of climate change, including risks and as8 sociated costs and ways to reduce them, to the 

9 public, decision-makers, public health profes10 sionals, and health care providers. 

11 (G) Develop partnerships with other gov12 ernment agencies, the private sector, non13 governmental organizations, universities, and 

14 international organizations to more effectively 

15 address domestic and global health aspects of 

16 climate change. 

17 (H) Provide leadership to State and local 

18 governments, community leaders, health care 

19 professionals, nongovernmental organizations, 

20 environmental justice networks, faith-based 

21 communities, the private sector and the public, 

22 domestically and internationally, regarding 

23 health protection from climate change effects. 

24 (I) Develop and implement preparedness 

25 and response plans for health threats, such as 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
14 

•HR 3271 IH

1 heat waves, severe weather events, and infec2 tious diseases. 

3 (J) Provide technical advice and support to 

4 State and local health departments, the private 

5 sector, and others in developing and imple6 menting national and global preparedness meas7 ures related to the health effects of climate 

8 change. 

9 (K) Promote workforce development by 

10 helping to ensure the training of a new genera11 tion of competent, experienced public health 

12 and health care professionals to respond to the 

13 health threats posed by climate change. 

14 (c) PERIODIC ASSESSMENT AND REVISION.—Not 

15 later than 1 year after the date of first publication of the 

16 national strategic action plan under subsection (a)(1), and 

17 annually thereafter, the Secretary shall periodically assess, 

18 and revise as necessary, the national strategic action plan 

19 under subsection (a)(1) and the climate and health pro20 gram under subsection (a)(1), to reflect new information 

21 collected pursuant to the implementation of the national 

22 strategic action plan and program and otherwise, includ23 ing information on— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
15 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (1) the status of and trends in critical environ2 mental health indicators and related human health 

3 impacts; 

4 (2) the trends in and impacts of climate change 

5 on public health; 

6 (3) advances in the development of strategies 

7 for preparing for and responding to the impacts of 

8 climate change on public health; and 

9 (4) the effectiveness of the implementation of 

10 the national strategic action plan in protecting 

11 against climate change health threats. 

12 (d) IMPLEMENTATION.— 

13 (1) IMPLEMENTATION THROUGH HHS.—The 

14 Secretary shall exercise the Secretary’s authority 

15 under this Act and other Federal statutes to achieve 

16 the goals and measures of the national strategic ac17 tion plan and climate and health program. 

18 (2) OTHER PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAMS AND

19 INITIATIVES.—The Secretary and Federal officials of 

20 other relevant Federal agencies shall administer 

21 public health programs and initiatives authorized by 

22 laws other than this Act, subject to the requirements 

23 of such laws, in a manner designed to achieve the 

24 goals of the national strategic action plan and cli25 mate and health program. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
16 

•HR 3271 IH

1 (3) HEALTH IMPACT ASSESSMENT.—The heads 

2 of all Federal agencies shall, on a regular basis, as3 sess the impacts that proposed and current laws, 

4 policies, and programs in their jurisdiction have or 

5 may have on protection against climate change 

6 health threats and shall assist State, Tribal, local, 

7 and territorial governments to conduct such assess8 ments. 

9 SEC. 5. ADVISORY BOARD. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall, pursuant 

11 to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), 

12 establish a permanent science advisory board to be com13 prised of not less than 10 and not more than 20 members. 

14 (b) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.—The Secretary 

15 shall appoint the members of the science advisory board 

16 from among individuals who— 

17 (1) are recommended by the President of the 

18 National Academy of Sciences and the President of 

19 the National Academy of Medicine; and 

20 (2) have expertise in essential public health and 

21 health care services, including with respect to vulner22 able populations, climate change, environmental and 

23 climate justice, and other relevant disciplines. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
17 

•HR 3271 IH

1 The Secretary shall ensure that the science advisory board 

2 includes members with practical or lived experience with 

3 relevant issues. 

4 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The science advisory board shall— 

5 (1) provide scientific and technical advice and 

6 recommendations to the Secretary on the domestic 

7 and international impacts of climate change on pub8 lic health, populations, and regions particularly vul9 nerable to the effects of climate change, and strate10 gies and mechanisms to prepare for and respond to 

11 the impacts of climate change on public health; 

12 (2) advise the Secretary regarding the best 

13 science available for purposes of issuing the national 

14 strategic action plan and conducting the climate and 

15 health program; and 

16 (3) submit a report to Congress on its activities 

17 and recommendations not later than 1 year after the 

18 date of enactment of this Act and not later than 

19 every year thereafter. 

20 (d) SUPPORT.—The Secretary shall provide financial 

21 and administrative support to the board. 

22 SEC. 6. CLIMATE CHANGE HEALTH PROTECTION AND PRO23 MOTION REPORTS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall offer to enter 

25 into an agreement, including the provision of such funding 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
18 

•HR 3271 IH

1 as may be necessary, with the National Academies of 

2 Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, under which such 

3 National Academies will prepare periodic reports to aid 

4 public health and health care professionals in preparing 

5 for and responding to the adverse health effects of climate 

6 change that— 

7 (1) review scientific developments on health im8 pacts of climate change; and 

9 (2) recommend changes to the national stra10 tegic action plan and climate and health program. 

11 (b) SUBMISSION.—The agreement under subsection 

12 (a) shall require a report to be submitted to Congress and 

13 the Secretary and made publicly available not later than 

14 1 year after the first publication of the national strategic 

15 action plan, and every 4 years thereafter. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS