Climate change will carry a price tag of billions of dollars for a number of U.S. states, according to researchers at the University of Maryland's Center for Integrative Environmental Research. In its report “The U.S. Economic Impacts of Climate Change and the Costs of Inaction,” the researchers conclude that the costs have already started to add up and will likely continue. But its not only the economy that will feel the impact of global warming.  Human health will be affected too as changes in climate will change prevalence and susceptibility to certain diseases. Higher temperatures have been linked to increased mortality, particularly in parts of the country that are not used to extreme heat. In Chicago, a five-day heat wave in 1995 led to an 85 percent jump in the death toll. A second issue, the researchers warn, is morbidity rates as not only heat exhaustion send people to the hospital, but stagnant air masses trap pollution and allergens that aggravate or cause respiratory ailments, create hazards from unstable weather and storms, and contribute to the spread of infectious diseases through habitat and genetic shifts in rodent and insect populations. Below are estimates on how climate changes can impact heat-related mortality under three scenarios.