Dive Brief:
- California-based Dignity Health has announced an end to its investments in thermal coal companies, as it moves to align its financial interests with its healthcare mission and the issue of climate change.
- The system's new fossil fuel stance is one of the boldest yet among U.S. health systems, coming second only to Wisconsin-based Gundersen Health System's move last fall to freeze any of its funds connected to coal, oil and gas, Modern Healthcare reports.
- The move came as the United Nations Conference on Climate Change continues in Paris alongside concurrent meetings with advocacy group Health Care Without Harm, which is leading the 2020 Health Care Climate Challenge.
Dive Insight:
According to Health Care Without Harm, in addition to Dignity, more than 50 major health systems and organizations representing 8,200 hospitals and health centers from every continent are participating in the 2020 Health Care Climate Challenge.
Dignity is close to the issue of climate change, having previously been tied to the Roman Catholic Church when the system operated as Catholic Healthcare West until 2012. Since then, Dignity has retained some of the same philosophies, including that of Pope Francis that healthcare leaders should participate in environmental stewardship, as Modern Healthcare notes.
Dignity says it pulled coal from its portfolio because it recognizes climate change as a prominent public health issue and aims to limit its relationships with the worst environmental offenders. The company has also screened out investments related to tobacco and weapons, but not gas and oil companies.
“Being here in Paris, I have to say I'm so struck by the sense that it's a political issue in the United States Congress, but there's a worldwide consensus that this is an issue we can no longer afford to ignore,” Sister Susan Vickers, Dignity's vice president of corporate responsibility, was quoted by Modern Healthcare.