What is Asthma?
Asthma is a chronic lung disease that causes repeated episodes of chest tightness, wheezing, cough, and shortness of breath. It can be life threatening.
Asthma attacks can be triggered by air pollution, allergens (pet dander, pests, mold), tobacco smoke, exercise, and infections. Learn more about asthma triggers in home environments.
Asthma Data
6.8% of children (2021) and 10.8% of adults (2022) in Maryland have asthma.
In 2022, there were 21,852 asthma-related emergency department visits in Maryland (age-adjusted rate of 38.5 per 10,000 residents) and 1,866 asthma-related hospitalizations (age-adjusted rate of 3.2 per 10,000 residents).
Black non-Hispanic children in Maryland have almost four times the rate of asthma-related emergency department visits as White non-Hispanic children.
In 2022, health care costs for asthma-related emergency departments totalled $48.1 million, and asthma-related hospitalizations cost an additional $21.9 million, totalling $70 million.
Asthma emergency department visits (per 1,000 population) for children aged 2-17 years by race and ethnicity (NH = Non Hispanic; Source: HSCRC)
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
All Races | 11.4 | 11.4 | 9.8 | 9.2 | 8.5 | 3.4 | 5.0 | 7.4 |
White NH | 5.0 | 4.9 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 1.5 | 2.0 | 3.4 |
Black NH | 23.3 | 23.8 | 20.5 | 19.1 | 18.0 | 7.3 | 10.5 | 14.3 |
Hispanic | 6.8 | 6.9 | 5.7 | 5.4 | 5.3 | 2.0 | 3.2 | 5.0 |
Asian NH | 2.2 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 2.7 | 2.6 | 0.7 | 1.1 | 3.6 |
Other NH | 15.8 | 13.0 | 11.5 | 10.6 | 9.1 | 2.8 | 4.4 | 6.9 |
Rates of emergency department visits (per 1,000 population) for children aged 2 - 17 years by jurisdiction, 2018 - 2022 (source: HSCRC).
For more information, the Maryland Asthma Control Program publishes an annual report on asthma.
What can you do?
Make sure your child is being treated with their inhaler properly.
Check the air quality so that you can avoid exposure to ozone, particulate matter, and other asthma triggers during bad air quality days.
Develop an Asthma Action Plan, which is a communication tool and a key component of a comprehensive education program for asthma management. The Asthma Action Plan includes information related to treatment schedule and patient self-management.
Prepare for asthma care during an emergency.
Join the MDH Asthma Community of Practice
What is Maryland Doing to Improve Asthma Outcomes?
Statewide Integrated Health Improvement Strategy
The Statewide Integrated Health Improvement Strategy (SIHIS) aligns statewide efforts across three domains that are interrelated and, if addressed successfully, have the potential to make significant improvement in not just Maryland’s healthcare system, but in the health outcomes of Marylanders. One of the goals of SIHIS is to decrease asthma-related emergency department visit rates for all children aged 2-17 by 42%, and for Black children by 50%. Read more about SIHIS here.
Asthma Community of Practice
MDH has formed an Asthma Community of Practice with individuals representing health care systems, primary care providers, academia, families, and other stakeholders. If you are interested in joining this Community of Practice, please email Mikaela Moore, SIHIS Coordinator at
mikaela.moore@maryland.gov.
Vision: That all people and families living with asthma receive the best possible care so that asthma does not affect their quality of life.
Mission: Improve practice through information and resource sharing
Purpose:
1) Serve as a forum to exchange best practices and information regarding asthma treatment management and prevention
2) Improve collaboration among stakeholders involved in asthma care
3) Ensure that Marylanders with asthma get the best possible care and access to prevention services
The next Asthma CoP meeting is scheduled for March 20th
Home Visiting Services for Families
The Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention and Environmental Case Management Program provides in-home services to reduce exposures to lead and to asthma triggers.
Learn more about these programs, including eligibility criteria and availability in your jurisdiction.
Maryland Asthma Control Program
The Maryland Asthma Control Program uses surveillance data from a number of sources to establish priorities for the Maryland Asthma Plan. The Maryland Asthma Control Program publishes an annual report on asthma, as well as a series of data briefs on specific topics:
Resources
