How much do heat waves cost?
The hidden costs of maximum heat – from lost productivity to health take care of heat-related illnesses – totaled greater than $7.7 billion over the past decade, in keeping with a brand new report from the California Department of Insurance.
The report was released amid a sustained heat wave in Northern California, where temperatures within the East Bay soared above 100 degrees Fahrenheit and warmth advisories were issued for cities across the Bay Area.
“Extreme heat is a silent, escalating disaster that threatens our health, economy and way of life in California,” State Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said in a press release. “We must prioritize resilience-building efforts and innovative insurance solutions to protect our state from the increasing impacts and financial risks of extreme heat.”
The Department of Insurance's report, “Impacts of Extreme Heat on California's Population, Infrastructure and Economy,” examines the financial impacts of maximum heat on the health, energy, economy and infrastructure sectors based on seven extreme heat events over the past decade. It concluded that there are gaps in traditional insurance coverage for losses from extreme heat events and really useful the creation of latest insurance solutions.
This is “the beginning, because we now have the data we need to make our decisions,” says Kathy Baughman McLeod, a member of the California Climate Insurance Working Group and CEO of Climate Resilience for All, a worldwide NGO working to guard the livelihoods and health of vulnerable communities and ladies from extreme heat.
“The extreme heat is getting more and more severe,” said Baughman McLeod.
In addition to strengthening infrastructure and health systems, the report, published on July 3, also recommends measures to cut back heat-related illnesses and the event of latest types of insurance that cover infrastructure damage, emergency services and business interruption during extreme heat. It also recommends using local governments' lessons learned to tell strategic planning and address challenges.
The majority of the hidden costs are health and safety-related, including the price of deaths, emergency room visits and other health care. In a 14-day heat event in 2022 that affected most of coastal California and saw the most well liked temperatures within the southern a part of the state, excessive heat directly contributed to almost 200 deaths, 140 hostile birth outcomes, 2,000 hospitalizations and 4,200 emergency room visits, the report said.
“We have this thing that is killing more people than any other climate threat, and it is invisible and silent,” said Baughman McLeod. “We need to double, triple, quadruple the data sets and tools we need to be able to respond.”
These health impacts disproportionately affect people from already overburdened populations, in keeping with the report. For example, Black, Native American, and white Hispanic populations experienced higher death rates attributable to heat events, with death rates in some disadvantaged communities as much as 14 to 30 percent higher than in non-disadvantaged ones. The effects of maximum heat also disproportionately affect older people and pregnant women – exacerbating existing inequalities.
“This report underscores the urgent need for equitable adaptation actions that prioritize the health and safety of our most vulnerable neighbors,” said Sona Mohnot, director of climate resilience on the Greenlining Institute, in a press release. “Together, we can develop sustainable solutions that protect everyone.”
The study took into consideration losses in agriculture, manufacturing and weather-dependent industries, while within the energy sector it examined costs resulting from power outages and productivity losses, the report said.
Only a “relatively small” portion of those costs are covered by insurance, the report says. The largest portion of the prices are premature deaths attributable to extreme heat. The strongest insurance coverage is medical health insurance for work-related accidents and non-fatal health consequences, the report says.
It's necessary to higher prepare for warmth events, Baughman McLeod said, adding that agencies should use the info from this report back to discuss heat event responses with stakeholders and industry leaders. She pointed to hurricane preparations in Florida, where she used to live, which incorporates an annual governor's preparedness conference and safety drills for kids.
“We need the same thing for heat because it's so much more deadly,” Baughman McLeod said. “It hurts vulnerable communities more than other parts of society, and people just still don't really understand that. They still say it's just the heat.”
“The most important thing we need,” added Baughman McLeod, “is to build a culture of prevention and preparedness.”
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