Year: 2025
Type: dissertation
Abstract: In North Carolina and across the country, climate change has led to warmer average temperatures. Periods of extreme heat, an increasingly common weather event in North Carolina, can result in heat-related illness, including heat exhaustion, heat stroke and even death. Heat-related illness puts health at risk, especially among low- income populations, adds to healthcare expenditures, strains resources and decreases productivity. In this paper, we define the problem, evaluate different policy solutions, determine the most effective policy solution and propose a three-year budget. We found that the most impactful, cost-effective and equitable policy solution is to ban utility companies in North Carolina from disconnecting residents' power for nonpayment May-September, or in a period of extreme heat. The policy will be evaluated by tracking the number of households that retain power during summer months, calculating the change in heat-related ED visits over time, and holding focus groups.
DOI: 10.17615/knez-a719
Authors: Rakowski, Meghan, Siranosian, Elizabeth, Lawal, Khadeejatul-Kubraa, Pavicevic, Katja
Institution: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Language: English
Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W6962481375
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