Climate and Health Impact Assessment
- Based on Article 37-2 of the "Framework Act on Health and Medical Services," an assessment of the impact of climate change on national health, including the types, characteristics, and trends of diseases, is conducted every 5 years.
Assessment Areas
- Climate Factors
- 1Extreme temperatures such as heatwaves and cold spells
- 2Ecosystem changes due to variations in temperature, rainfall, etc.
- 3Changes in air quality, such as fine dust and ozone
- Health Factors
- 1Exacerbation of heat and cold-related illnesses like heatstroke and hypothermia, and underlying conditions such as cardiovascular disease
- 2Insect and animal-borne infectious diseases like dengue fever, and water and foodborne infectious diseases like Vibrio infections
- 3Induction and exacerbation of acute and chronic diseases such as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases
[Heatwaves/cold spells, air quality, and climate change-related infectious diseases (3 areas, 31 assessment indicators)]
| Assessment Area | Category | Assessment Indicator | Assessment Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heatwave | Surveillance | Number of patients and deaths reported through the heat-related illness emergency room surveillance system | '11 ~ '20 |
| Number of deaths from heat-related illness | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of emergency room visits for heat-related illness | '14 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of hospitalizations for heat-related illness | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Estimated Indicator | Number of excess deaths due to heatwaves | '10 ~ '19 | |
| Number of excess emergency room visits due to heatwaves | '14 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of excess hospitalizations due to heatwaves | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Cold wave | Surveillance | Number of patients and deaths reported through the cold-related illness emergency room surveillance system | '13 ~ '20 |
| Number of deaths from cold-related illness | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of emergency room visits for cold-related illness | '14 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of hospitalizations for cold-related illness | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Estimated | Number of excess deaths due to cold spells | '10 ~ '19 | |
| Number of excess emergency room visits for cold-related illness due to cold spells | '14 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of excess hospitalizations due to cold spells | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Air Quality | Estimated | Number of excess deaths due to short-term exposure to ultrafine dust | '15 ~ '19 |
| Number of excess hospitalizations for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases due to short-term exposure to ultrafine dust | '15 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of excess deaths due to long-term exposure to ultrafine dust | '15 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of excess deaths due to short-term exposure to ozone | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Infectious | Surveillance | Number of reported cases of dengue fever | '10 ~ '19 |
| Number of reported cases of West Nile fever | '11 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of tsutsugamushi disease | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of SFTS [Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome] | '13 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of Lyme disease | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of cholera | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of typhoid fever | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of bacillary dysentery | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of Vibrio vulnificus sepsis | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of norovirus infection | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of Campylobacter infection | '10 ~ '19 | ||
| Number of reported cases of Salmonella infection | '15 ~ '19 | ||
| Estimated | Number of excess morbidity cases due to intestinal infectious diseases | '10 ~ '19 '14 ~ '19 |
Progress
- 2017
Establishment
- 2018
Preparation of assessment plan and system establishment
- 2019
Establishment of assessment
- 2020
Preparation of assessment manual
- 2021
Implementation of assessment
- 2022
Publication of results
- Preparation of assessment plan and establishment of a system for Climate and Health Impact Assessment (Oct, 2017 – Aug. 2018, Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs)
- Establishment of an assessment system and pilot project for Climate and Health Impact Assessment (Oct. 2018 – Nov. 2019, The Korean Society for Preventive Medicine)
- Research on the development of an evidence report and draft assessment manual for Climate and Health Impact Assessment (Aug. – Dec. 2020, The Korean Society for Preventive Medicine)
- Research on the establishment of the Climate and Health Impact Assessment (Apr. – Dec. 2021, The Korean Society for Preventive Medicine)
Related Legislation
- Article 37-2 of the Framework Act on Health and Medical Services (Assessment of the Impact of Climate Change on National Health, etc.) Link to Legislation
- Article 13-2 of the Enforcement Decree of the Framework Act on Health and Medical Services (Content and Methods of Climate and Health Impact Assessment, etc.) Link to Legislation
- Article 13-3 of the Framework Act on Health and Medical Services (Content and Methods of Fact-finding Surveys, etc.) Link to Legislation
Related Websit
| Website | Operating | Main |
|---|---|---|
| National Climate Crisis Adaptation Information Portal (http://kaccc.kei.re.kr/portal) |
KEI [Korea Environment Institute] KACCC [Korea Adaptation Center for Climate Change] |
|
| Climate Information Portal (http://www.climate.go.kr/home) |
Korea Meteorological Administration |
|
| Meteorological Data Open Portal (http://data.kma.go.kr) |
Korea Meteorological Administration |
|
| Air Korea (http://www.airkorea.or.kr) |
Korea Environment Corporation |
|
| Comprehensive Climate Change Monitoring Information System (http://www.climate.go.kr/home/09_monitoring/index.php/main) |
Korea Meteorological Administration |
|