Question NW2598 to the Minister of Health
22 October 2018 - NW2598
Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Health
What steps is his department taking to quantify and mitigate the disproportionate health impacts outlined in the findings of the most recent Global Burden of Disease Study 2016 of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, which estimates that in South Africa, ambient or outdoor and indoor or household air pollution cause 20, 160 and 6,934 annual deaths respectively, with health impacts being largest among children under the age of five, women, older people and the poor? (NW2890E)
Reply:
The National Department of Health (NDoH) has been working with the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) to quantify the impact of air pollution on health outcomes. The SAMRC is currently conducting the Comparative Risk Assessment Study for South Africa to quantify the attributable deaths and disability from selected risk. Ambient air pollution and indoor (household) air pollution are two of the risk factors being assessed in this study. In addition , the SAMRC is currently at an advanced stage of development of a study that will evaluate the impact on health of a package of interventions aimed at reducing indoor and ambient air pollution.
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Parliamentary Question