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Experts tell Senate hearing air pollution and disasters cost Americans hundreds of billions annually
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Summary
Economists and health scientists told the Senate Environment and Public Works hearing that climate change already imposes large, measurable costs on U.S. households—from an average of about $900 per household to hundreds of billions a year in health damages—while data gaps and regulatory rollbacks hinder oversight.
Experts who testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee said climate change is already raising everyday costs for American families, from health care to home insurance.
Dr. Kim Clausing, an economist introduced as the Eric Emzoldt professor of tax law and policy at the UCLA School of Law, told the committee that her analysis shows the average household is already facing roughly $900 a year in costs tied to climate impacts, and that nationwide climate‑related losses in her main estimate aggregate to about $110,000,000,000 annually. "Climate change is an affordability problem," she said, adding that higher insurance costs, energy bills and health care expenditures disproportionately burden low‑income and elderly households.
Dr. Vijay Limaye, senior scientist and director of climate and health at NRDC, described the health toll tied to air pollution and extreme events and placed a larger health cost figure before the committee: "Our research estimates more than $800,000,000,000 in annual health related damages from the death and disease amongst the American population caused by air pollution," he said. Limaye cited studies linking wildfire smoke and extreme events to thousands of premature deaths, hospitalizations and emergency‑room visits in sampled states.
The witnesses warned that these costs are often undercounted in official analyses. Limaye and others said federal data programs that tracked billion‑dollar disasters have been curtailed and that recent administrative changes at agencies reduce the ability to quantify and include health costs in regulatory cost‑benefit calculations. "This administration finds that math inconvenient," Limaye said, referring to a move to exclude health costs from some EPA regulatory analyses.
Why it matters: Testimony tied household budget pressure—higher premiums, escalating deductibles and nonrenewals—to broader economic risks, including depressed property values and potential spillovers into the financial system. Clausing and Limaye said such cascades can create systemic economic risk if large regions become uninsurable.
The hearing produced no formal votes. Witnesses urged stronger monitoring, more robust data collection and policies that both reduce emissions and support adaptation to limit rising household costs.
