Climate change is already hurting your health — and government inaction means it's only going to get worse

Talks of climate change often spur thoughts of a far-off dystopia for future generations. But a new report shows that climate change is already damaging "the very foundations of our health and well-being" — and that governments are not doing enough to prevent it from getting substantially worse. 

"There is no safe global temperature rise from a health perspective, and additional warming will affect every U.S. region," said the report, published by medical journal The Lancet. "...All of us have been or likely will be affected by climate change, with some hazards more easily recognizable than others."

Droughts, extreme heat and wildfires are among the most visible and widely-discussed threats, as they cause immediate devastation and fuel future implications, such as rising sea levels. In the U.S. last year, the journal pointed out, there were a "record-breaking" 22 weather and climate disasters that each caused over $1 billion in damage and more than $95 billion in total losses.