*GHL 10 – Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform: Indispensable to a Healthy and Just Transition?

As twelve-month temperature averages breach the Paris Agreement target of limiting global warming to 1.5℃ and countries endure heat waves, storms, drought, wildfires and more, the impacts on global health are increasingly evident. In the hardest hit communities, overwhelmed health systems struggle to meet these novel and growing demands.

And yet public funds are still subsidizing the primary upstream cause of climate change, fossil fuels, responsible for 75% of greenhouse gas emissions to date. In 2022, fossil fuels received US$1.7 trillion in direct public subsidies. Universal Health Coverage (UHC) could be delivered at an annual cost of US$1.2 trillion.

The fossil fuel industry also benefits from indirect subsidies, when healthcare systems, government agencies, employers, families, and communities bear the health burdens from fossil fuel operations. Direct and indirect subsidies for fossil fuels in 2022 totaled US$7 trillion - 7.1% of global GDP, while health costs from air pollution topped US$8 trillion. In 2014, every dollar in fossil fuel subsidies spent by G20 countries resulted in six times that in health costs. In the absence of a rapid, decisive, and just transition to clean energy, fossil fuel companies reap ongoing profits while failing to meet the energy access needs of the poorest communities, meanwhile damaging public health with toxic exposures in air, water, and soil.

Participants in this session will critically examine the relationships among public fossil fuel subsidies, climate change, a just transition, healthcare system resilience, and health, and discuss solutions for aligning public investments to meet our global health and equity goals.