A Scalable Approach for Estimating Employee Commuting Emissions at U.S. Healthcare Facilities.

Marino, Melanie; Eckelman, Matthew J · J Occup Environ Med · 2026

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Abstract

This study aims to develop a standardized method to estimate employee commuting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for healthcare facilities across the U.S. Current methods can be laborious, time-consuming, and difficult to scale - relying heavily on survey participation or manual data extraction. Quantitative data analysis was used to spatially join healthcare facility locations with EPA Smart Location Calculator data and estimate per-worker commuting GHG emissions for U.S. healthcare facilities. Analyzing approximately 63,000 healthcare facilities in the U.S, results show commuting emissions per worker concentrated around the national average of 1,949 kg CO2e/year, about 12% of the current U.S. per‑capita average for all GHG emissions. This research provides healthcare organizations with a tool for estimating baseline commuting emissions, facilitating more effective sustainability initiatives and compliance with evolving climate pledges in the sector.