Mortality, Temperature, and Public Adaptation Policy: Evidence from Italy

Filippo Pavanello and Giulia Valenti

No 386192, FEEM Working Papers from Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM)

Abstract: In 2004, Italy introduced a national program to address heat-related health risks, combining public awareness campaigns, heat-wave warning systems, and hospital protocols. Leveraging administrative mortality data and high-frequency temperature variation, we show that the program reduced heat-related mortality by more than 57% on days at or above 30°C. To identify the mechanisms, we exploit the staggered introduction of heat-wave warning systems across provinces and show that treated areas experienced substantially larger reductions in heat-related mortality. We further document that information disclosure plays a key role in driving these reductions. Overall, our findings underscore the importance of public adaptation policies that rely on information provision to cost-effectively mitigate the health impacts of extreme temperatures.

Keywords: Climate Change; Sustainability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 51
Date: 2025-12-27
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:feemwp:386192

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.386192

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