Health Affairs January 14, 2026
The US health workforce is unprepared for the accelerating health impacts of climate change, from heat-related illness and air pollution to climate-driven disasters and supply chain disruptions. Despite growing awareness, integration of climate health into medical education and professional practice remains inconsistent and lacks national coordination.
In this Forefront article, we outline a policy agenda to drive rapid and equitable workforce transformation. We identify four critical levers—federal investment in a Public Health Climate Corps; creation of new career pathways in prevention, environmental health, and climate-responsive care; consensus on a core set of climate-health competencies for integration across the undergraduate-to-continuing education continuum; and alignment with nursing and allied health professional education. Climate-aligned approaches to preventive health and lifestyle medicine, including nutrition,...
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