American Lung Association National President and CEO Harold P. Wimmer Responds to Reports that President Trump will withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord

In response to news reports that President Trump intends to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement, American Lung Association National President and CEO Harold P. Wimmer issued the following statement:

"Withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement would be a grave mistake. Everyone deserves to breathe air that will not make them sick or cause them to die prematurely. We need to cooperate globally to address climate change if we want to continue to reduce air pollution and protect public health. The U.S. must not weaken our commitment to protecting the health of Americans through tackling climate change.

"Our nation has made excellent progress in the fight for healthy air, but the health of millions of Americans remains at risk, and climate change is making it harder to continue this hard fought progress. Drought, wildfires, heat, flooding and degraded air quality are just a few of the challenges that Americans experience because of climate change, which includes dangerous risks to Americans' health. Without steps to limit carbon, methane and other air pollution, climate change will only get worse, putting the health and lives of even more Americans at risk."

To schedule a media interview with an American Lung Association expert about the health impacts of air pollution and how climate change affects our ability to clean up air pollution, contact Allison MacMunn at [email protected] or 312-801-7628.