Asthma Control Program Highlights

Tracking

Population-based models to establish surveillance for asthma incidence in defined geographic areas

To provide better estimates of asthma rates, CDC is funding the Kaiser Foundation Research Institute (Portland, Oregon) and the Miami- Dade County Health Department (Miami, Florida) to develop models for identifying new asthma cases.

Enhanced surveillance of asthma deaths

To understand the circumstances surrounding asthma deaths and determine if these deaths were preventable, CDC is funding state health departments in California, Illinois, and Michigan to develop, implement, and evaluate a rapid asthma death notification and investigation system.

Interventions

Controlling Asthma in American Cities

To decrease asthma-related morbidity, CDC is funding grantees in seven states (California, Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia) to use innovative collaborative approaches to improve overall asthma management among urban children up to 18 years of age.

Inner-city asthma intervention

CDC is funding grantees in 16 states (Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, and Texas) and in Washington, D.C., to provide inner-city families with asthma education and individualized asthma control plans.

Enabling the nation's schools to prevent asthma attacks and absences

CDC is funding six urban school districts (Baltimore, Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia) and six national nongovernmental organizations (American Lung Association, Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, STARBRIGHT Foundation, National Association of School Nurses, American Academy of Pediatrics, and American Association of School Administrators) to support and address asthma control within a coordinated school health program.

Replication and implementation of scientifically proven asthma interventions

CDC is funding grantees to implement the following two scientifically proven asthma interventions shown to decrease acute care visits, decrease hospitalizations, and increase compliance with asthma care plans: the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America's "Asthma Care Training for Kids" (ACT; grantees in New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington) and the American Lung Association's "pen Airways for Schools" (OAS; grantees in California, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, and New York). The goals for ACT are to increase asthma control compliance behaviors and to decrease emergency room visits and number of days spent in the hospital. The goals for OAS are to increase school performance and selfmanagement behaviors and to decrease the number of asthma episodes.

Partnerships

Addressing asthma from a public health perspective

CDC is funding state health departments in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Washington, D.C., to develop comprehensive, statewide asthma control plans that include disease tracking and intervention components. CDC is also funding Michigan, New York, and Oregon to implement their comprehensive asthma control plans.

General partnerships

In addition to funding specific partnership projects, CDC participates in and promotes partnerships among government agencies, nonprofit groups, and the private sector, including managed care and health care organizations for controlling asthma. These partners work together to promote asthma control policies, education initiatives, appropriate medical management, and environmental management to eliminate or reduce exposure to asthma triggers.

Examples of CDC's National Asthma Control Partners

• Allergy and Asthma Network/Mothers of Asthmatics
• American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology
• American Academy of Pediatrics
• American Association of School Administrators
• American Lung Association
• Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America
• National Association of School Nurses
• National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
• National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases
• Starlight Children's Foundation
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency