Drought and Health

The Water, Climate and Health Program at the University of Nebraska Medical Center's College of Public Health is at the forefront of understanding the complex connections between drought and human health.

Drought is one of the deadliest and costliest climate-related disasters worldwide. From cutting-edge research to national policy frameworks, our team of internationally-recognized experts lead interdisciplinary efforts in environmental science, community engagement, and public health policy to drive innovation in drought and health preparedness and response around the globe.

Read our national reports on drought policy, explore our drought and health research, and learn more about our drought and health resources below.

Dr. Jesse Bell at the Drought Resilience +10 Conference in Geneva Switzerland

Advancing Global Drought and Health Resilience

Dr. Jesse Bell attended the World Meteorological Organization's Drought Resilience +10 Conference in October 2024 to advocate for the inclusion of public health initiatives in national drought plans across the globe.

Key Resources

Drought and Public Health: A Roadmap for Advancing Engagement and Preparedness

Drought is a major but often overlooked public health threat in the U.S. To address this, our team partnered with NOAA’s NIDIS to lead a national assessment through workshops and interviews from 2019–2022. The resulting report outlines health impacts, shares expert insights, and offers key recommendations to improve drought preparedness and public health response.

Cover image of the roadmap document

Read the full report here.

Drought and Health: A Messaging Framework for Public Health Professionals and Heallthcare Providers

Effective communication is critical to addressing the health impacts of drought. This interactive messaging framework document is designed to assist both public health professionals and healthcare providers deliver clear, timely messsages to the communities and patients they serve.

Cover image of the messaging framework document

Access the framework here.

Drought and Health Overview

Synthesis Articles

Bell, J. E., Herring, S. C., Jantarasami, L., Adrianopoli, C., Benedict, K., Conlon, K., Escobar, V., Hess, J., Luvall, J., Garcia-Pando, C. P., Quattrochi, D., Runkle, J., & C. J. Schreck, I. I. I. (2016). Ch. 4: Impacts of Extreme Events on Human Health. In The Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health in the United States: A Scientific Assessment (pp. 99–128). U.S. Global Change Research Program, Washington, DC. https://health2016.globalchange.gov/extreme-events

Berman, J. D., Abadi, A. M., & Bell, J. E. (2024). Existing Challenges and Opportunities for Advancing Drought and Health Research. Current Environmental Health Reports, 11(2), 255–265. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40572-024-00440-z

Ebi, K. L., Vanos, J., Baldwin, J. W., Bell, J. E., Hondula, D. M., Errett, N. A., Hayes, K., Reid, C. E., Saha, S., Spector, J., & Berry, P. (2021). Extreme Weather and Climate Change: Population Health and Health System Implications. Annual Review of Public Health, 42(Volume 42, 2021), 293–315. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-012420-105026

USGCRP, 2016: The Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health in the United States: A Scientific Assessment. Crimmins, A., J. Balbus, J.L. Gamble, C.B. Beard, J.E. Bell, D. Dodgen, R.J. Eisen, N. Fann, M.D. Hawkins, S.C. Herring, L. Jantarasami, D.M. Mills, S. Saha, M.C. Sarofim, J. Trtanj, and L. Ziska, Eds. U.S. Global Change Research Program, Washington, DC, 312 pp. http://dx.doi.org/10.7930/J0R49NQX

5th National Climate Assessment

Health Policy

Public Health Policy Actions to Address Health Issues Associated with Drought in a Changing Climate—Rachel E. Lookadoo, Jesse E. Bell, 2020. (n.d.).

Vulnerable Populations

Jalalzadeh Fard, B., Puvvula, J., Smith, K., Hayes, M., Lookadoo, R., Mahmood, R., Medcalf, S., Rowe, C., Durr, M., & Bell, J. E. (2024). Health vulnerability mapping for drought: A case study in a predominantly rural, agricultural state. Environmental Research: Health, 2(4), 045001. https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5309/ad689a

Physical Science

Bell, J. E., Leeper, R. D., Palecki, M. A., Coopersmith, E., Wilson, T., Bilotta, R., & Embler, S. (2015). Evaluation of the 2012 Drought with a Newly Established National Soil Monitoring Network. Vadose Zone Journal, 14(11), vzj2015.02.0023. https://doi.org/10.2136/vzj2015.02.0023

Leeper, R. D., Bell, J. E., Vines, C., & Palecki, M. (2017). An Evaluation of the North American Regional Reanalysis Simulated Soil Moisture Conditions during the 2011–13 Drought Period. https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-16-0132.1

Drought and Mental Health

Wish. (2022, May 13). Mental health in water scarce cities: An unrecognized climate change pressure point. WISH.

Berman, J. D., Ramirez, M. R., Bell, J. E., Bilotta, R., Gerr, F., & Fethke, N. B. (2021). The association between drought conditions and increased occupational psychosocial stress among U.S. farmers: An occupational cohort study. Science of The Total Environment, 798, 149245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.149245

Vins, H., Bell, J., Saha, S., & Hess, J. J. (2015). The Mental Health Outcomes of Drought: A Systematic Review and Causal Process Diagram. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 12(10), Article 10. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph121013251

Drought and Respiratory, Cardiovascular, and Fungal Disease Impacts

Respiratory Impacts

Gwon, Y., Ji, Y., Berman, J. D., Abadi, A. M., Leeper, R. D., Rennie, J., & Bell, J. E. (2025). Impacts of drought on respiratory mortality in the upper midwest United States: A population subgroup assessment. Environmental Research: Health, 3(2), 025002. https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5309/adafd6

Cardiovascular Impacts

Gwon, Y., Ji, Y., Abadi, A. M., Rau, A., Berman, J. D., Leeper, R. D., Rennie, J., Nagaya, R., & Bell, J. E. (2024). The effect of heterogeneous severe drought on all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in the Northern Rockies and Plains of the United States. Science of The Total Environment, 912, 169033. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.169033

Fungal Disease Impacts

Coopersmith, E. J., Bell, J. E., Benedict, K., Shriber, J., McCotter, O., & Cosh, M. H. (2017). Relating coccidioidomycosis (valley fever) incidence to soil moisture conditions. GeoHealth, 1(1), 51–63. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GH000033

Drought and All-Cause Mortality

Abadi, A. M., Gwon, Y., Gribble, M. O., Berman, J. D., Bilotta, R., Hobbins, M., & Bell, J. E. (2022). Drought and all-cause mortality in Nebraska from 1980 to 2014: Time-series analyses by age, sex, race, urbanicity and drought severity. Science of The Total Environment, 840, 156660. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156660

Lynch, K. M., Lyles, R. H., Waller, L. A., Abadi, A. M., Bell, J. E., & Gribble, M. O. (2020). Drought severity and all-cause mortality rates among adults in the United States: 1968–2014. Environmental Health, 19(1), 52. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-020-00597-8

International Reports

Drought Resilience and COVID-19: WASAG Working Paper

Drought Resilience +10 Conference: Conclusions and Recommendations

Drought Resilience +10 Conference: Workstream 9, Health

Regional Drought Risk Management and Mitigation Strategy for South Asia

Community Engagement

The Water, Climate and Health Program is committed to turning research into action. Through national drought and health summits, global thought leadership, and training the public health and healthcare workforce, our team of interdisciplinary experts are leaders in the drought resilience field.

In fall 2024, the Water, Climate and Health Program hosted public health professionals across the nation for a workshop on drought and health preparedness and response.

Dr. Jesse Bell was an invited speaker at the 2024 United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification's COP16 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

At the Drought Resilience +10 Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, Dr. Jesse Bell asked international participants to report the health impacts of drought that they see in their respective countries.

The Water, Climate and Health Program trained public health professionals on drought and health risk messaging at the 2024 Nebraska Environmental Health Summit.

Summer Woolsey discusses the drought and health work being done at the Water, Climate and Health Program at the Drought Resilience +10 Conference in Geneva, Switzerland.

Factsheets

Stay Drought Safe: Avoid Tick and Mosquito Bites

Stay Drought Safe: 6 Ways to Prevent the Dangerous Impacts of Drought Events

Poster

Stay Drought Safe: The Health Impacts of Drought

Upcoming Events

09-30-2025 - 10-01-2025