Inflation Reduction Act may improve outcomes for patients with asthma, allergy
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The Inflation Reduction Act may have been designed to ease household costs for consumers across the country, but it could have additional benefits for people with asthma and allergies as well, according to the American Lung Association.
“This is a really significant advance in both the potential to improve air quality and to reduce the pace at which we’re seeing climate change advance,” Meredith McCormack, MD, MHS, a member of the scientific and editorial review panel at the American Lung Association, told Healio.
“It also could improve the health of the American people and their access to health care,” continued McCormack, who also is associate professor of medicine and environmental health sciences in the division of pulmonary and critical care medicine at Johns Hopkins University, as well as the director of the university’s BREATHE Center, which specifically looks at the effect of the environment on lung health, and the Asthma Precision Medicine Center.
Specific threats
The transportation sector generates pollution by burning fossil fuels and is the largest contributor to greenhouse gases, which are significant causes of asthma exacerbations and morbidity, particularly among children, McCormack said.
“We know that vehicular emissions are a significant source of the air pollution that has health ramifications,” McCormack said. “Living near a highway or near a port increases your risk of being exposed to traffic-related emissions.”
The impacts of these emissions on different communities vary as well.
“Communities of color are about three and a half times more likely than white communities to live in areas that have unhealthy air quality,” McCormack said.
The Clean Vehicle Credit in the Inflation Reduction Act provides a tax credit of up to $7,500 for electric vehicles purchased through 2032.
“If all new passenger vehicles sold are zero-emission by 2035, it would result in almost 3 million avoided asthma attacks,” McCormack said. “That’s just an example of the significant health benefits and air quality benefits that can be realized by transition to zero-emission vehicles.”
The legislation also invests $1 billion in deploying zero-emission heavy duty vehicles such as trucks and buses, McCormack continued, with aims to transition the U.S. Postal Service’s fleet to zero-emission vehicles as well.
“There’s also several billion dollars set aside for cleaning up ports, which is another important source of air pollution,” McCormack said. “This is in multiple domains, which is exciting.”
Additionally, McCormack noted how climate change affects people with allergies.
“The pollen season, for example, is longer with more intense spikes in pollen concentrations that really impact individuals with allergies, as well as many people with asthma who have allergies,” McCormack said.
Mold is another threat for people with allergies and asthma that may get worse with climate change, she continued.
“We have more dramatic precipitation events, and that can affect people in multiple ways,” McCormack said. “For example, flooding contributes to substantial mold exposure.”
Transforming infrastructure
Coastal areas are prone to flooding, McCormack explained, although the coasts are not the only regions that face these threats.
“We know that low-income communities often suffer a disproportionate burden of the impact of climate change, sometimes because of lack of resources for adaptive strategies, but then also because of poor housing stock, which can contribute to things like propensity for mold,” she said.
The Inflation Reduction Act aims to mitigate global warming’s impact on these communities by encouraging a shift to renewable energy sources at the consumer and systemic levels.
“Tax credits for renewable energy sources like wind and solar were expanded, and these will really support the transition away from the dependence on fossil fuels, which is also a really important aspect,” McCormack said.
Overall, the legislation aims to create 930 million solar panels, 120,000 wind turbines and 2,300 grid-scale battery plants by 2030, along with clean energy projects at rural electric cooperatives that serve 42 million people.
McCormack also said the legislation will help hold industry accountable for reducing methane emissions.
“Methane is a very potent greenhouse gas, with actually more than 80 times the warming potential of carbon,” she said. “So, targeting and reducing methane emissions is really important, so there are provisions specific to this.”
A greenhouse gas reduction fund will help deploy clean energy in low-income and disadvantaged communities as well, McCormack said. For example, individual families will be eligible for tax credits by installing solar panels on their rooftops. Families also will be able to take advantage of consumer rebates to purchase heat pumps and other home appliances designed to conserve energy.
“In addition, there are provisions to help make upgrades for residential as well as federal buildings, which saves consumers money, but will also reduce the risk of breathing air pollution,” McCormack said.
“These are communities that suffer disproportionately from exposure to air pollution, and there are health consequences,” she added. “The fact that there are specific funds to support low-income and disadvantaged communities is another important aspect.”
Impacts on health care
According to the White House, these initiatives and others in the Inflation Reduction Act will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about one billion metric tons while preventing 3,900 premature deaths and 100,000 asthma attacks each year by 2030.
As the energy infrastructure evolves, however, patients with allergy and asthma still will need to contend with their illnesses. The Inflation Reduction Act includes provisions to keep health care affordable and accessible, McCormack said, such as the extension of tax credits to help families and individuals cover their health insurance premiums.
“There are specific provisions for senior citizens to afford prescription drugs, and that’s certainly something that impacts my patients. The cost of inhalers can be very expensive,” she said.
McCormack also said that the legislation’s cap on out-of-pocket drug costs for Medicare recipients is significant as well. Plus, it lets these patients pay these out-of-pocket costs over the full year rather than all at once.
“That is a very important, practical issue for many, many individuals,” she said. “I think it will really help people manage their health care expenses across the calendar year.”
References:
- By the numbers: The Inflation Reduction Act. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/08/15/by-the-numbers-the-inflation-reduction-act/. Published Aug. 15, 2022. Accessed Dec. 6, 2022.
- Electric vehicle (EV) and fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) tax credit. https://afdc.energy.gov/laws/409. Accessed Dec. 6, 2022.