(AGENPARL) – mer 01 maggio 2024 Issued: May 1, 2024 (9:05am EDT)
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EPA Marks Asthma Awareness Month and Honors National Leader in the Fight
Against Asthma Disparities
Maine Asthma Prevention and Control Program Recognized as National Model
WASHINGTON – Every year in May, EPA marks Asthma Awareness Month to raise
national awareness of asthma and to highlight leading programs across the
nation that serve as models for delivering outstanding improvements in asthma
care and quality of life for people with asthma.
“Growing up with respiratory challenges in North Carolina, I know all too
well the struggle that millions of Americans suffer daily. Asthma is a public
health issue, an economic issue, and an environmental issue that impacts the
entire country, especially low-income and minority communities,” said EPA
Administrator Michael S. Regan. “That’s why EPA is taking action to slash
harmful pollution and raise awareness of the tools available for communities
to manage asthma, control symptoms, and improve health.”
Asthma is a major public health issue that affects more than 25 million
Americans, including four million children, and disproportionately affects
certain racial and ethnic groups. The estimated economic impact of asthma is
more than $80 billion per year from direct and indirect costs, such as missed
school and workdays.
Fortunately, there are steps people can take as part of a comprehensive
approach to manage their asthma, control symptoms, and improve health. These
include following a personalized action plan to help manage asthma and
avoiding triggers that can exacerbate symptoms.
EPA is taking action to reduce the pollution that causes asthma attacks while
more communities, with EPA support, deploy approaches to improve the lives of
people with asthma, especially in minority and low-income communities. 
People can control asthma symptoms and improve health with three
straightforward strategies:
Identify and avoid indoor environmental asthma triggers. Dust mites,
secondhand smoke, mold, pests, pet dander and other allergens and contaminants
in homes, schools and other indoor spaces can trigger asthma attacks. Work
with your health care provider to identify and avoid your personal indoor
asthma triggers. 
Pay attention to outdoor air quality. Ozone and particle pollution can cause
or worsen asthma attacks, even indoors. Check local air quality conditions at
AirNow.gov and download the EPA AirNow app for your phone. 
Create a personalized asthma action plan. This will help you monitor your or
your child’s asthma and take steps to reduce exposure to personal asthma
triggers. Ask a health care provider to assist you in creating a plan. 
During Asthma Awareness Month, EPA recognizes leading asthma management
programs for their in-home interventions through the National Environmental
Leadership Award in Asthma Management. The 2024 winner is the Maine Asthma
Prevention and Control Program. 
Maine’s program provides leadership and coordination for asthma care and
service delivery statewide. One of MAPC’s initiatives is the In-Home Asthma
Education Program, an innovative, home-based asthma program for adults,
children and caregivers who, despite adequate medical management, have asthma
that was not well controlled. The program connects those most in need with
environmental asthma remediation tools and community resources through health
educators who are highly attuned to the disparities that exist in asthma
management. 
EPA works year-round to promote understanding of asthma triggers, as a part of
comprehensive asthma management, through research, education and outreach.
With support from EPA, more communities are deploying approaches to improve
the lives of people with asthma, especially in minority and low-income
communities. A focus of EPA’s work to reduce the scope of asthma is
addressing the Indoor Environmental Determinants of Health. IEDOH are
modifiable environmental factors indoors — such as household air pollution,
the presence of pests, mold and moisture, chemicals and irritants — that
influence risk and experience of chronic diseases, like asthma.
In addition to EPA’s work in raising asthma awareness, EPA is taking action
to reduce the pollution that causes asthma attacks. In recent months, EPA has
finalized strengthened pollution standards for cars, trucks, and power plants
— as well as stronger air quality standards for particulate matter — that
once fully implemented, are anticipated to prevent tens of thousands of cases
of asthma each year and avoid millions of lost days of school and work due to
asthma symptoms.  
With funding from President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda, EPA is also
working to improve the lives of millions of Americans by reducing pollution in
neighborhoods where people live, work, play, and go to school. EPA is
providing billions of dollars through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and
Inflation Reduction Act to help schools and communities purchase clean school
buses and clean heavy-duty vehicles that will reduce the air pollution from
older diesel engines that is linked to asthma. Phasing out these older diesel
engines, which disproportionally affect communities of color and Tribal
communities, will ensure cleaner air for students and communities near these
transportation routes. In addition, projects developed under the Inflation
Reduction Act’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and the Climate Pollution
Reduction Grants Program are expected to fund projects that will provide even
more clean-air benefits.
Throughout May, EPA will release content on social media and its asthma
website to provide additional tips and guidance to improve well-being. 
Learn more about asthma and environmental triggers and read about the 2024
National Environmental Leadership Award winner.
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