There's still time to register for the California Medical Association (CMA) climate health panel discussion “Understanding the Climate Health Crisis and How California Physicians Can Make an Impact.” Held on Friday, October 21, 2022, at 2 pm, in conjunction with the CMA House of Delegates meeting, the two-hour panel will be open to attend either in person or via Zoom.

Co-sponsored by Climate Health Now and the California Foundation on the Environment and the Economy (CFEE), this discussion will explore the health impacts of climate change in California and the opportunities for California's physicians to advance policy-level climate solutions with enormous public health co-benefits.

If you are interested in attending in-person or via Zoom, please register here.

Speakers

Rohan Radhakrishna, M.D., MPH
Deputy Director, Office of Health Equity, California Department of Public Health
Dr. Radhakrishna was appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom and confirmed by the Senate to lead the Office of Health Equity (OHE). He serves as a Deputy Director, Chief Equity Officer, and Tribal Liaison for the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). He aims to advance partnerships to change narratives and power structures to help create a California for All.

Assemblymember Luz Rivas
California Legislature, District 39
Assemblymember Rivas is committed to advocating for environmental justice through her role as the Chair of the Assembly Committee on Natural Resources and as Assemblywoman representing Assembly District 39. During her time in the legislature, she has authored successful legislation regarding environmental policy.

Lisa Patel, M.D., MPH
Deputy Executive Director of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health; Clinical Assistant Professor, Pediatrics, Stanford University
Dr. Patel is a member of the Executive Committee for the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Environmental Health and Climate Change. She is a former Presidential Management Fellow for the Environmental Protection Agency.

Jason Vargo, Ph.D.
Senior Researcher on Climate Risks and Equity, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
Dr. Vargo is a senior researcher in the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s Community Development team focused on understanding the role of climate risks and equity in ensuring an inclusive and prosperous economy for all. He was lead scientist in CDPH's Climate Change and Health Equity Section. During the pandemic he led the CDPH’s COVID-19 Modeling Team and was scientific lead for California’s Health Equity Metric, a first of its kind in the nation.

Debra Gore-Mann, MBA
President & CEO, The Greenlining Institute
Gore-Mann is the President & CEO of The Greenlining Institute. Debra has over 25+ years of leadership experience in nonprofit and private research universities and over ten years of private sector business development expertise. Debra received her B.S. in Management Sciences and MBA in finance from Stanford University. She serves on multiple nonprofit and foundation boards that work to serve communities whose works include criminal justice, nonviolence, and youth educational opportunities.

Walt Vernon
Principal and CEO, Mazzetti Climate Action Consulting, Affiliated with National Academy of Medicine Climate Change Grand Challenge
Vernon has nearly 30 years of experience in the research, planning, and design of healthcare facilities. His contributions to the industry include serving as a founding member of the Built Environment Network, whose intent is to advance knowledge in the health care facilities network.

Ashley McClure M.D., FACP
Co-founder and Co-director, Climate Health Now
Dr. McClure is a Seattle native who went to medical school at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland and trained in Internal Medicine at the University of Washington.  She has been practicing outpatient primary care in Oakland, California since 2016. She is a co-founder and Co-director of Climate Health Now, a California-based community organizing nonprofit that brings the trusted voices of California’s health community into the climate movement in order to realize health equity.

Moderators

Jerry Abraham, M.D., MPH

Trustee, CMA Board of Trustees
Dr. Abraham is the Director & Chief Vaccinologist at Kedren Vaccines; President-Elect, Los Angeles County Medical Association; Trustee, California Medical Association; and Councilor of the American Medical Association. Dr. Abraham completed the Center for Health Equity Climate Health Fellowship, which helps lead the physician climate change movement at the American Medical Association and serves as a CMA Climate Champion – helping to organize education and advocacy for California health professionals.

Jay Hansen
President and CEO, California Foundation on the Environment and the Economy (CFEE)
Hansen is President and CEO of the California Foundation on the Environment and the Economy (CFEE), a non-profit institution that works with California state legislators, state and regulatory agencies to build consensus on our state's pressing issues. Prior to CFEE, Hansen worked at the California Medical Association as its Chief Strategy Officer. He also served as the CEO of its foundation, Physicians for a Healthy California, which he led through a major rebranding effort resulting in significant growth and establishing the leadership of California's physicians in promoting our state's health.