Hospitals Curbing Emissions Switch Anesthesia Gases, Plug Leaks

Hospitals under growing pressure to curb their greenhouse gas emissions are finding that taking a fresh look at how they use anesthesia can have a big payoff.

Tackling emissions from anesthesia gases, which make up about 5% of a hospital’s carbons emissions, requires simple switches that can have a substantial effect with very little downside, said anesthesiologists and health system executives.

That insight from health system executives comes as pressure mounts on the health-care industry to address its greenhouse gas emissions. The health sector accounts for 8.5% of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions—almost as much as agriculture—and the Department of ...