Stripping lives from EPA math

An administrative policy change will remove or de‑weight estimates of avoided deaths and other health benefits (from reductions in PM2.5 and ozone) from the EPA’s cost–benefit calculations when setting pollution limits. That redefinition of 'benefit' makes many protective regulations look economically unjustified even when they prevent substantial premature mortality. — Rewriting how an environmental regulator counts lives saved turns public‑health protection into a political and accounting contest and can rapidly lower regulatory stringency, affecting air quality, mortality, and environmental justice outcomes nationwide.