The American Lung Association in California has started a campaign to call attention to worsening air quality because of climate change.
The online campaign "Doctors for Climate Health" supports California in its efforts to combat climate change, but says more is needed.
Dr. Afif El-Hasan is a pediatrician and board member with the American Lung Association in California.
He's one of the doctors urging the state to adopt more laws to improve air quality and address climate change.
"We have the droughts in addition to the increased wildfires," says El-Hasan. "All of this once again related to the global warming. But the bottom line is finding the different ways to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels."
El-Hasan says California's low carbon fuel standard and cap and trade fuel policies will cut pollution-related health costs by about $8 billion over the next decade.
He says he's seen an increase in children with breathing and respiratory illnesses, like asthma, in his southern California clinic. He believes they're caused by worsening air quality.
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