Davos, 17 January 2025 – Oliver Wyman, a global management consulting firm and a business of Marsh McLennan (NYSE: MMC), launched today a new report in collaboration with the World Economic Forum, titled “Healthcare in a Changing Climate: Investing in Resilient Solutions.” The report reveals that an investment of $65 billion in vaccines, medicines, medical devices, and health technology could save up to 6.5 million lives, reduce global economic losses by $5.8 trillion, and prevent significant illness and disability caused by climate change.
January 17, 2025
Davos, 17 January 2025 – Oliver Wyman, a global management consulting firm and a business of Marsh McLennan (NYSE: MMC), launched today a new report in collaboration with the World Economic Forum, titled “Healthcare in a Changing Climate: Investing in Resilient Solutions.” The report reveals that an investment of $65 billion in vaccines, medicines, medical devices, and health technology could save up to 6.5 million lives, reduce global economic losses by $5.8 trillion, and prevent significant illness and disability caused by climate change.
The report builds on last year’s first-ever study on the health consequences of climate change for the World Economic Forum, titled “ Quantifying the Impact of Climate Change on Human Health ,” developed by Oliver Wyman and the Forum. This earlier study projected that the increasing frequency and ferocity of climate change-related natural disasters would lead to 14.5 million more deaths and cause $12.5 trillion in economic losses by 2050.
The just-released 2025 report emphasizes the urgent need for immediate action to mitigate those anticipated health impacts of climate change, particularly in less economically developed regions. It highlights the critical role of life sciences in the battle against climate change and the necessity for collaboration among governments, academia, civil society, and the private sector — similar to the efforts around COVID-19 that led to development of effective vaccines in less than a year.
The $65 billion investment over five to eight years would be spent on addressing 36 unmet medical needs the report identifies for priority diseases that will likely be aggravated by global warming, such as malaria, dengue fever, heat-related illnesses and hypertension, post-traumatic stress disorder, and asthma. To be effective, the investment must begin soon, given the timeline for development, approval and commercialization of new healthcare products.
Oliver Eitelwein, Partner, Health and Life Sciences, Oliver Wyman, said: “Life sciences innovation can play a pivotal role in the prevention of significant suffering and loss from climate change’s impact on health systems. Investing $65 billion proactively today to tackle the key unmet medical needs from climate-aggravated diseases is a first important step and one that is likely to reduce economic losses from the crisis by 90 times the amount of the investment by 2050.”
To address these challenges effectively, the report advocates for a comprehensive approach that integrates climate and health data, enhancing the forecasting of climate-driven diseases and improving public health responses. It identifies high-priority strategies, such as making local healthcare systems climate-resilient, leveraging private-sector innovation, and allocating government resources for a robust global response. Additionally, it highlights that addressing social determinants of health, like economic stability and access to education, is vital for mitigating the adverse effects of climate change on health outcomes and ensuring resilience in global health systems.
Shyam Bishen, Head, Centre for Health and Healthcare, World Economic Forum, added: “The report emphasizes that we can still mitigate up to half of the severe health impacts of the climate crisis. Climate change is already causing major public health challenges, such as droughts in eastern Africa affecting over 10 million people and hurricanes in the southern United States. A coordinated global effort among governments, academia, and the private sector is crucial to develop effective health solutions and strengthen healthcare systems for vulnerable populations.”
About Oliver Wyman
Oliver Wyman , a business of Marsh McLennan (NYSE: MMC), is a management consulting firm combining deep industry knowledge with specialized expertise to help clients optimize their business, improve operations and accelerate performance. Marsh McLennan is a global leader in risk, strategy and people, advising clients in 130 countries across four businesses: Marsh , Guy Carpenter , Mercer and Oliver Wyman . With annual revenue of $23 billion and more than 85,000 colleagues, Marsh McLennan helps build the confidence to thrive through the power of perspective. For more information, visit oliverwyman.com , or follow on LinkedIn and About the World Economic Forum
About the World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum is the international organization for public-private cooperation. It provides a global, impartial, and not-for-profit platform for meaningful connection between stakeholders to establish trust and build initiatives for cooperation and progress. The Forum is committed to facilitating progress to overcome systemic challenges through its 10 Centres, each of which apply the institution’s unique combination of impact methods to drive holistic efforts. Established in 1971 as a not-for-profit foundation, it is independent, impartial, and not tied to any special interests, upholding the highest standards of governance and moral and intellectual integrity.
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