Kaiser Permanente: We値l be ready for the inevitable climate-change-based downfall of society [View all]

[n2doc]

From Bloomberg News:

Kaiser Permanente (KP), one of the largest health care providers in America, has a clear mission: improve health. In a surprising and welcome twist, KP is publicly recognizing that climate change threatens that mission.

“One of the largest health care providers” glosses over it a little bit. Kaiser has over 180,000 employees — 16,000 of whom are physicians — and 8.8 million members. In short, Kaiser is an institution that rivals New York City in scale with a history rooted in tackling social issues; the company evolved from an informal association aimed at providing health insurance to shipbuilders in Oakland.

Kaiser’s climate change efforts are ones you might predict: increased energy efficiency, carbon offsets, and generating its own power, including 11 megawatts of solar. More interesting is how Kaiser anticipates climate change will impact public health.

As [Kaiser's Environmental Stewardship Officer Kathy] Gerwig put it, “there’s credible evidence of significant climate change that will impact our ability to provide quality health care.”

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http://grist.org/news/kaiser-permanente-well-be-ready-for-the-inevitable-climate-change-based-downfall-of-society/