Joint Commission Joins Decarbonization Effort

The Joint Commission recently joined the Biden Administration’s Health Sector Climate Pledge to reduce the carbon contributions emanating from the healthcare sector and to help make healthcare organizations more resilient to the effects of climate change. The Joint Commission has pledged to reduce emissions by a minimum of 50 percent by 2030 and achieve net zero emissions by 2050. 

The Joint Commission is working with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and other hospital and health sector organizations to support their efforts to reduce the industry’s carbon footprint.  

“Decarbonization and sustainability are critical to a health agenda, especially because climate change is having a direct and inequitable impact on the health and well-being of people globally,” says Jonathan B. Perlin, The Joint Commission’s new president and CEO. “Our mission is to continuously improve healthcare for the public, and we cannot fulfill that without addressing climate change. As the largest standards-setting and accrediting body in healthcare, it is vital that we take a leadership role and work with healthcare organizations nationally and internationally to reduce the carbon footprint.”  

The Joint Commission recently convened a group of healthcare organizations to discuss steps they have taken to address their impact on the climate. The Joint Commission plans to identify and curate resources for organizations to help them take steps to reduce their own carbon emissions and to make those resources readily available.