Battle plan for Baltimore’s disproportionately high childhood asthma rates

Children in Baltimore suffer from asthma at a rate more than double the national average, but the city’s response to this long-recognized disparity has continued to fall short, according to a new report. “The current ‘system’ for addressing uncontrolled asthma symptoms and asthma disparities in Baltimore City is inadequate and uncoordinated,” concludes Sarah LaFave of Johns Hopkins University, author of the study prepared for the Abell Foundation.

In Baltimore, 20% of children, or about 24,000 youth, have an asthma diagnosis – more than twice the national rate of 9%, the report noted. Likewise, pediatric asthma-related emergency room visits occur in Baltimore at more than double the statewide rate.

Click here to read the full article.

Source: Baltimore Brew