1

 www http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns

Asthma in the US

Asthma is a lifelong disease that causes wheezing, 

breathlessness, chest tightness, and coughing. It can 

limit a person’s quality of life. While we don’t know 

why asthma rates are rising, we do know that most 

people with asthma can control their symptoms and 

prevent asthma attacks by avoiding asthma triggers and 

correctly using prescribed medicines, such as inhaled 

corticosteroids. 

The number of people diagnosed with asthma grew by 

4.3 million from 2001 to 2009. From 2001 through 

2009 asthma rates rose the most among black children, 

almost a 50% increase. Asthma was linked to 3,447 

deaths (about 9 per day) in 2007. Asthma costs in the 

US grew from about $53 billion in 2002 to about $56 

billion in 2007, about a 6% increase. Greater access 

to medical care is needed for the growing number of 

people with asthma. 

Learn what you can do to reduce asthma.

 See page 4

Want to learn more? Visit

About 1 in 2 people (about 12 

million) with asthma had an 

asthma attack in 2008, but 

many asthma attacks could 

have been prevented.

Asthma cost the US about 

$56 billion in medical costs, 

lost school and work days, 

and early deaths in 2007. 

1 in 12

About 1 in 12 people 

(about 25 million) have 

asthma, and the numbers 

are increasing every year.

12M

Growing every year

 

Billion

National Center for Environmental Health

Division of Environmental Hazards and Health Effects 

May 2011
Problem

2

◊ More than half (59%) of children and onethird (33%) of adults who had an asthma 

attack missed school or work because of 

asthma in 2008. On average, in 2008 children 

missed 4 days of school and adults missed 5 

days of work because of asthma. 

3. Better asthma education is needed. 

◊ People with asthma can prevent asthma 

attacks if they are taught to use inhaled 

corticosteroids and other prescribed daily 

long-term control medicines correctly and to 

avoid asthma triggers. Triggers can include 

tobacco smoke, mold, outdoor air pollution, 

and colds and flu. 

◊ In 2008 less than half of people with asthma 

reported being taught how to avoid triggers. 

Almost half (48%) of adults who were taught 

how to avoid triggers did not follow most of 

this advice.

◊ Doctors and patients can better manage 

asthma by creating a personal asthma action 

plan that the patient follows. 

1. Too many people have asthma.

◊ The number of people with asthma continues 

to grow. One in 12 people (about 25 million, 

or 8% of the population) had asthma in 2009, 

compared with 1 in 14 (about 20 million, or 7%) 

in 2001.

◊ More than half (53%) of people with asthma had 

an asthma attack in 2008. More children (57%) 

than adults (51%) had an attack.

◊ 185 children and 3,262 adults died from asthma 

in 2007.

◊ About 1 in 10 children (10%) had asthma 

and 1 in 12 adults (8%) had asthma in 2009. 

Women were more likely than men and boys 

more likely than girls to have asthma. 

◊ About 1 in 9 (11%) non-Hispanic blacks of all 

ages and about 1 in 6 (17%) of non-Hispanic 

black children had asthma in 2009, the 

highest rate among racial/ethnic groups. 

◊ The greatest rise in asthma rates was among 

black children (almost a 50% increase) from 

2001 through 2009.

2. Asthma has a high cost for individuals 

and the nation.

◊ Asthma cost the US about $3,300 per person 

with asthma each year from 2002 to 2007 in 

medical expenses.

◊ Medical expenses associated with asthma 

increased from $48.6 billion in 2002 to $50.1 

billion in 2007. About 2 in 5 (40%) uninsured 

people with asthma could not afford their 

prescription medicines and about 1 in 9 (11%) 

insured people with asthma could not afford 

their prescription medicines.

Green Zone: Doing Well

No cough, wheeze, chest tightness, or shortness of 

breath; can do all usual activities. Take prescribed longterm control medicine such as inhaled corticosteroids.

Red Zone: Medical Alert!

Very short of breath; quick-relief medicines don’t help; 

cannot do usual activities; symptoms no better after 24 

hours in Yellow Zone. Get medical help NOW.

Yellow Zone: Getting Worse

Cough, wheeze, chest tightness, or shortness of 

breath; waking at night; can do some, but not all, usual 

activities. Add quick-relief medicine.

Asthma Action Plan

Source: http://www.cdc.gov/asthma/actionplan.html

Asthma is increasing every 

year in the US.
3

Who’s at Risk?

AL

AZ AR

CA CO

NM

CT

DE DC

FL

GA

ID

IL IN

IA

KS

KY

LA

ME

MD

MA

MI

MN

MS

MO

MT

NV NE

NH

NJ

AK

HI

NY

NC

ND

OH

OK

OR

PA

RI

SC

SD

TN

TX

UT

VT

VA

WA

WV

WI

WY

Adults with asthma, US, 2009

SOURCE: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2009

5%–<7%

8%-–<9%

7%–<8%

≥9%

% of all adults

10

 9

 8

 7

 6

 5

Asthma by age and sex US, 2001-2009

% with asthma

Children

All Females

Adults

All Males

Total

Source: National Health Interview Survey, 2001-2009

Percentages are age-adjusted.

Asthma self-management education by age, US, 2008

SOURCE: National Health Interview Survey, 2008, asthma supplement.

Adults

Children

Taught to

respond to

an asthma

attack

Taught to

recognize early

signs and

symptoms of

an asthma attack

Taught to recognize

early signs and

symptoms of an

asthma attack

Given a written

asthma management

action plan

78%

64%

72%

55% 51% 49% 44%

30%
4

 www http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns

 www http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr

For more information, please contact 

Telephone: 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636)

TTY: 1-888-232-6348

E-mail: cdcinfo@cdc.gov

Web: www.cdc.gov

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30333

Publication date: 05/03/2011

What Can Be Done

Federal, state, and local health 

officials can

◊ Track asthma rates and the effectiveness of 

control measures so continuous improvements 

can be made in prevention efforts.

◊ Promote influenza and pneumonia vaccination 

for people with asthma.

◊ Promote improvements in indoor air quality 

for people with asthma through measures 

such as smoke-free air laws and policies, 

healthy schools and workplaces, and 

improvements in outdoor air quality.

Health care providers can

◊ Determine the severity of asthma and monitor 

how much control the patient has over it.

◊ Make an asthma action plan for patients. 

Use this to teach them how to use inhaled 

corticosteroids and other prescribed medicines 

correctly and how to avoid asthma triggers 

such as tobacco smoke, mold, pet dander, and 

outdoor air pollution.

◊ Prescribe inhaled corticosteroids for all 

patients with persistent asthma.

People with asthma and parents of 

children with asthma can

◊ Receive ongoing appropriate medical care. 

◊ Be empowered through education to manage 

their asthma and asthma attacks. 

◊ Avoid asthma triggers at school, work, home, 

and outdoors. Parents of children with asthma 

should not smoke, or if they do, smoke only 

outdoors and not in their cars.

◊ Use inhaled corticosteroids and other 

prescribed medicines correctly.

Schools and school nurses can

◊ Use student asthma action plans to guide 

use of inhaled corticosteroids and other 

prescribed asthma medicines correctly and 

to avoid asthma triggers.

◊ Make students’ quick-relief inhalers readily 

available for them to use at school as 

needed. 

◊ Take steps to fix indoor air quality problems 

like mold and outdoor air quality problems 

such as idling school buses.

Employers and insurers can

◊ Promote healthy workplaces by reducing or 

eliminating known asthma triggers.

◊ Promote measures that prevent asthma attacks 

such as eliminating co-payments for inhaled 

corticosteroids and other prescribed medicines.

◊ Provide reimbursement for home 

environmental assessments and educational 

sessions conducted by clinicians, health 

educators, and other health professionals both 

within and outside of the clinical setting.

◊ Provide reimbursement for long-term control 

medicines, education, and services to reduce 

asthma triggers that are often not covered by 

health insurers.

C221812-B