Virtual doctor’s appointments are helping healthcare companies reduce carbon emissions, though sustainability is mostly seen as a side benefit of telehealth rather than its main driver. The healthcare industry is responsible for about 5% of global greenhouse-gas emissions, of which the U.S. healthcare system alone accounts for a quarter. Similarly, in England, medicines, buildings, equipment and other supply-chain items generate most of the National Health Service’s emissions, according to official NHS figures. The company has designed an app for teleconsultations that is able to show patients the carbon emissions avoided through that consultation. In line with national data, the company said its Scope 3 emissions account for 75% of its total emissions.

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Persons: telehealth, Cynthia Cox, KFF, ”, Colin Cave, ” Cave, Glyn Richards, Ben Phillips, BUPA, Marijka Grey, Kyle Zebley, — Dieter Holger, Cecilia Butini Organizations: McKinsey, Sustainable Business, Affordable, Energy, U.S . Agency for Healthcare Research, National Health, Kaiser Permanente, Permanente Kaiser Permanente, Spain —, CommonSpirit Health, CommonSpirit, American Telemedicine Association Locations: England, telemedicine, Kaiser, U.S, Northwest, U.K, Spain, Grey, Europe