Health Affairs November 4, 2025
When the federal government shuts down, images of furloughed workers and closed museums and monuments dominate the headlines. But hidden beneath these surface disruptions are quieter, more insidious consequences: weakened public health safeguards and heightened risks for communities of color already facing disproportionate burdens of pollution and climate hazards. For these “environmental justice” (EJ) communities, a shutdown is more than a bureaucratic inconvenience; it can be a direct threat to their health, safety, and dignity. That is why Congress and state leaders must keep environmental safeguards in place, even when the government shuts down.
EJ communities are defined primarily by their disproportionate burden of environmental hazards (including landfills, incinerators, power plants, refineries, and industrial animal operations); their disproportionate exposure to...
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