{
  "id": 16818444,
  "title": "Experts urge 'global health emergency' as climate harms accelerate",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/28/experts-urge-global-health-emergency-as-climate-harms-accelerate",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-28T00:05:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "DW News",
    "slug": "dw-news",
    "url": "https://www.dw.com/en/experts-urge-global-health-emergency-as-climate-harms-accelerate/a-79773232?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In 2023, climate change claimed over half a million lives due to heat, with an additional 1.07 trillion dollars in lost potential income worldwide, according to the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change. The Lancet study, a collaboration involving nearly 150 researchers from over 30 countries, highlights the rapid acceleration of health risks attributed to climate change.\n\nBetween 2016 and 2023, climate change was responsible for 68% of heat-related deaths, a sharp increase from 55% in the preceding decade. Extreme drought, which threatens food and water supplies and raises disease risks, has expanded more than 700% faster than in the previous decade. The economic impacts are also mounting, with farmworkers bearing the brunt of lost income due to heat exposure, and vulnerable economies in Africa and South-East Asia experiencing devastating losses equivalent to 5% of GDP.\n\nTo address this escalating crisis, experts are calling for a global health emergency declaration for climate change, urging a shift in focus from emissions targets to lives saved and improved health outcomes. The World Health Organization (WHO) has proposed a new mechanism to help countries share information, coordinate responses, and disburse funds for climate health adaptation. While progress has been made, such as the reduction in deaths from fossil fuel air pollution, fossil fuels still account for over 80% of global energy production, with emissions reaching a record high in 2024. The world's largest oil and gas companies are projected to produce 150% more oil and gas by 2040 than what is compatible with limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Urgent action is needed to transition towards renewable energy sources and build resilience against the increasingly severe impacts of climate change.",
  "summary": "Heat, drought and storms linked to climate change are already killing millions worldwide. Researchers want global warming to be declared a global health emergency as the health harms from it escalate faster than ever.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}