Understanding the Health Harms of Climate Change: A Six Americas Analysis

The analysis finds a significant increase in the proportion of Americans who recognize the health risks of climate change between 2014 and 2020. This growth in awareness occurred across most audience segments, including those with low engagement, while those skeptical of climate change showed little to no change in perception.

• Between 2014 and 2020, the proportion of the U.S. population identifying as 'Alarmed' about climate change more than doubled, and by April 2020, over 50% of American adults fell into either the 'Alarmed' (26%) or 'Concerned' (28%) segments.
• Public recognition of health harms from climate change increased substantially between 2014 and 2020. For instance, the percentage of Americans expecting increased bodily harm from severe storms and hurricanes rose from 34% to 57%, and those expecting increased harm from wildfires rose from 26% to 54%.
• Awareness of health threats grew among the Alarmed, Concerned, Cautious, and Disengaged segments, while the Doubtful and Dismissive segments showed little or no change in their risk perceptions.
• The study tracked ten specific health risks: heat stroke from extreme heat waves; bodily harm from severe storms/hurricanes, wildfires, and flooding; asthma/lung diseases; insect-borne diseases (e.g., Lyme Disease, West Nile virus, dengue fever); food/waterborne illnesses; pollen-related allergies; depression; and severe anxiety.

APA

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (2021). Understanding the Health Harms of Climate Change: A Six Americas Analysis. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/understanding-the-health-harms-of-climate-change-a-six-americas-analysis/

Chicago

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Understanding the Health Harms of Climate Change: A Six Americas Analysis. 2021. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/understanding-the-health-harms-of-climate-change-a-six-americas-analysis/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Yale Program on Climate Change Communication |title=Understanding the Health Harms of Climate Change: A Six Americas Analysis |date=30 March 2021 |url=https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/understanding-the-health-harms-of-climate-change-a-six-americas-analysis/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{yaleprogramonclimatechangecommunication2021understanding, author = {{Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}}, title = {{Understanding the Health Harms of Climate Change: A Six Americas Analysis}}, institution = {Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}, year = {2021}, month = mar, url = {https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/understanding-the-health-harms-of-climate-change-a-six-americas-analysis/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }