Markey, Khanna Reintroduce Green New Deal for Health to Invest in Patients, Workers, and Infrastructure for Today’s Climate-Health Threats

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Washington (July 28, 2026) - Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), top Democrat on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Subcommittee on Primary Health and Retirement Security, and Representative Ro Khanna (CA-17) today reintroduced the Green New Deal for Health, legislation that will equip our country's healthcare system to respond to the growing impacts of climate change and ensure all Americans have access to care in their communities.

"This summer, Massachusetts has been hit with record-breaking temperatures, smoky air from wildfires, and flash floods. Every year that Washington waits to address the climate crisis, more people pay for it with their health," said Senator Markey. "The Green New Deal for Health is a blueprint for a healthcare system that can withstand the crisis we're already living through, while putting patients and workers first. Our communities cannot afford for Congress to keep treating climate and health as separate issues. I'm thankful to partner with Congressman Khanna to fortify our health infrastructure with the urgency it requires."

"Across the world, hundreds of millions of people are already feeling the effects of climate change and the health consequences that often follow. From increased cases of asthma due to air pollution to disruptions at care facilities after extreme weather events, it's clear we need to take steps now to protect public health," said Representative Khanna. "I'm proud to join Senator Markey in reintroducing the Green New Deal for Health, a sweeping bill that reimagines what our health care system can look like when we prioritize our people and our planet."

The Green New Deal for Health boldly reimagines a healthcare system that is prepared to protect the health and well-being of our workers, our communities, and our planet. Specifically, the legislation would:

• On healthcare access: Invests $130 billion over five years in community health centers through the Community Health Center Fund.
• On climate-resilient infrastructure: Revives the landmark New Deal-era Hill-Burton program by authorizing $100 billion in federal grants to public and nonprofit medical facilities to improve climate resilience and disaster mitigation-ensuring uninterrupted access to care during climate disasters and extreme weather, while guaranteeing prevailing wages for workers and requiring facilities to serve neighboring communities.
• On protecting communities against hospital closures: Requires hospitals that receive Medicare payments to notify the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) at least 180 days before a full closure or discontinuation of services, so frontline communities are not stranded in health care deserts.
• On transparent, green supply chains: Directs HHS to establish a task force to develop policies for mandatory public disclosure of the emissions and climate risk of FDA-approved drugs, devices, and biologics.
• On investing in the health workforce: Directs federal dollars toward climate and health education, builds a robust community health workforce, prioritizes grants to facilities that collectively bargain with their workers, and provides hazard pay to workers who respond after a crisis.
• On community mental health and resilience: Funds grants for resilient community mental health programs and research on extreme heat risk and response.
• On home resiliency for medical needs: Makes solar batteries, heat pumps, and other resiliency measures eligible Medicare expenses so people with disabilities and medical needs can install life-saving home infrastructure.
• On research and innovation: Invests $5 billion per year and establishes the National Climate and Health Research and Innovation Initiative to support scientific research into the health impacts of climate change and develop innovative approaches to climate-health resilience.

The Green New Deal for Health is cosponsored by Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and Representatives Maxwell Frost (FL-10), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Shri Thanedar (MI-13), Yvette Clarke (NY-09), and Ilhan Omar (MN-05).

The legislation is endorsed by AFT: Education, Healthcare, Public Services; Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments; Alzheimer's Foundation of America; American College of Nurse Midwives; Boston Medical Center; Center for Biological Diversity; Committee of Interns and Residents (CIR-SEIU); Earthjustice Action; Green & Healthy Homes Initiative; Health Care Without Harm U.S.; International Transformational Resilience Coalition (ITRC); Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers; National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA); National Nurses United; People's Action Institute; and Transhealth.

Senator Markey has been a champion for climate action, as the initial Senate sponsor of the Green New Deal. He has fought for legislation and funding to address climate-health issues, as the author of the Preventing HEAT Illness and Deaths Act. His Environmental Justice Air Quality Monitoring Act received $3 million in funding for hyper-local air pollution monitors through the Inflation Reduction Act.

On July 15, 2026, Senator Markey applauded the Senate's unanimous passage of the Older Americans Act (OAA) Reauthorization Act, which included provisions from the Senator's bills to allow home modification funding to be used for weatherization projects and improving the air quality of older Americans' homes and residences.

In April 2026, Senator Markey introduced a package of legislation during Earth Week to address maternal and infant mortality, support climate change education and awareness for students, support youth leadership in federal environmental decision-making, provide frontline workers with hazard pay during disasters, and protect seniors by enabling safer and more resilient homes.

In July 2025, Senator Markey introduced a resolution and the Climate Change Health Protection and Promotion Act to recognize climate change as a growing threat to public health and create a coordinated federal strategy to protect communities from worsening climate-fueled harms. He also introduced the Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act, a bipartisan bill that tackles the nation's mental health crisis by addressing the extensive community trauma caused by disasters.

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