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AMA J Ethics
; 24(10): E919-926, 2022 10 01.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36215183
ABSTRACT
US health care is responsible for 8.5% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions, contributes to nearly 30 pounds of waste per patient per day, and uses a vast array of toxic chemicals and pharmaceuticals that pollute our air and water. Communities are not affected equally by the volume and location of this waste: historically marginalized populations are hurt first and worst. This commentary on a case considers the irony that the health sector simultaneously responds to and produces environmental damage and argues that health professionals are ethically bound to protect patients' and communities' health.