SGIM26: Friday Plenary: John Balbus

Health in a Warming World: Quality Care for a Healthier Future
This is a recorded session from the SGIM 2026 Annual Meeting.

The SGIM26 Friday Plenary speaker was John Balbus, MD, MPH, Principal of Climate Care Consulting, LLC, and former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Climate Change and Health Equity at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  His presentation was titled, “Health in a Warming World: Quality Care for a Healthier Future.”

Dr. Balbus was trained in Internal Medicine and Occupational and Environmental Medicine, and has dedicated his career to addressing the health impacts of climate change and environmental exposures. Before leading the creation of the HHS Office of Climate Change and Health Equity, Dr. Balbus spent twelve years as Senior Advisor for Public Health at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. His prior roles include Chief Health Scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund and Associate Professor and founding Acting Chair of Environmental and Occupational Health at the George Washington University School of Public Health.

Dr. Balbus received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, his MD from the University of Pennsylvania, and his MPH from the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health. He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians and was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2021.