Climate change alarmists could ban or restrict medical anesthesia under new bill

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Posted on 01/16/2025 10:55:55 AM PST by algore

A Washington Democrat hopes to study the impact of medical anesthesia on climate change. The goal is to address the environmental impact of the anesthetic gases used in medical, dental and veterinary practices.

The bill said the state could prohibit the manufacture, distribution, sale or use of anesthetic gases.

Senate Bill 5236 orders the Department of Ecology to commission a study of anesthetic gases, including desflurane, isoflurane, sevoflurane, halothane and nitrous oxide because they are recognized as potent greenhouse gases contributing to climate change.

The study must determine the extent to which the gases are used in Washington, provide an estimate of the emissions from anesthesia, and recommend measures to either reduce or completely eliminate emissions from these gases.

“(Department of Ecology) must submit recommendations to the appropriate committees of the legislature regarding any further statutory changes needed in order to appropriately and effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with the use of anesthetic gases, including any recommendations to prohibit the manufacture, distribution, sale or use of specific anesthetic gases,” the law states.

This is environmentalism at its most extreme. It’s enough to get even Greta Thunberg to laugh at this.

Neither Washington nor the country has a climate change problem associated with anesthesia in any way, shape or form. In fact, there’s not even a global problem tied to anesthesia.

Yet the legislation said it’s “prudent not to overlook meaningful opportunities to reduce emissions of other types of greenhouse gases from more niche sources such as anesthetic gases.”

According to the American Society of Anesthesiologists, anesthetic gases are only estimated to contribute between 0.01% and 0.1% of total global greenhouse gas emissions.

In clinical healthcare settings, they only represent 3% of emissions nationwide. The numbers show the emissions to be negligible globally and nationally.

The data is clear. Even if you completely banned anesthesia in Washington, giving a wooden stick or leather strap to bite on during surgery or downing shots of moonshine while having wisdom teeth removed, there would be no impact on climate change.

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Usually Washington State just follows California, but not this time.

1 posted on 01/16/2025 10:55:55 AM PST by algore

To: algore

2 posted on 01/16/2025 10:58:01 AM PST by cgbg (It is time to pull the Deep State out of the mass media--like ticks from a dog.)

To: algore

3 posted on 01/16/2025 10:58:20 AM PST by Carry_Okie (The tree of liberty needs a rope.)

To: algore

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