Asthma Care and Prevention in Rural Communities Act of 2019

To authorize the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to award grants to eligible counties for the use of mobile clinics and distance learning and telemedicine to diagnose and treat children with asthma in rural areas and medically underserved communities, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Asthma Care and Prevention in Rural Communities Act of 2019 2. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) Asthma has a high morbidity and can even lead to death if not properly managed. (2) Nationally, over 25 million people suffer from asthma according to the most recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (3) Nationally, of those who suffer from asthma, 43.6 percent of adults report one or more asthma attacks annually, and of all children who suffer from asthma, 51.6 percent report one or more asthma attacks annually. (4) Nationally the prevalence of asthma among children is 8.4 percent. (5) When asthma is controlled, it can lead to fewer school and work days missed, hospitalizations, and emergency room visits. (6) While asthma is often believed to be a greater problem for urban centers, the burden of asthma on rural communities in the United States is understudied. (7) Some research suggests that certain rural areas face the same risk factors as cities. (8) Research shows that rural communities may have a harder time accessing care for asthma, due to lack of transportation to and the distance of residents from health care services. (9) Mobile asthma clinics have been proven to help medically underserved communities manage this disease while providing cost-saving measures. 3. Addressing the burden of asthma in rural areas and medically underserved communities (a) Grants for mobile clinics and distance learning and telemedicine (1) Authorization The Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may award grants to eligible counties for the use of mobile clinics and distance learning and telemedicine— (A) to diagnose and treat children with asthma in rural areas, and medically underserved communities, in eligible counties; and (B) to educate individuals in such areas and communities about asthma. (2) Subgrants An eligible county receiving a grant under paragraph (1) may use the grant funds to award subgrants to schools, hospitals, or other local organizations to administer mobile clinics and distance learning and telemedicine in the county for the purposes listed in paragraph (1). (3) Definitions In this subsection: (A) The term children (B) The term eligible counties (C) The term medically underserved community 42 U.S.C. 295p (4) Authorization of appropriations To carry out this subsection, there is authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024. (b) Study The Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shall— (1) conduct a study on— (A) the burden of asthma in rural areas of the United States; (B) risk and protective factors for asthma in such areas; and (C) best practices for preventing and treating asthma in such areas; (2) ensure that data used in such study is disaggregated such that no racial or ethnic subgroup is overlooked due to the absence of asthma in the larger group to which that subgroup belongs; and (3) not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, complete such study and submit a report to the Congress on the results of such study.

Summary: Asthma Care and Prevention in Rural Communities Act of 2019 This bill permits the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to award grants to address childhood asthma in rural and underserved communities. Counties with high prevalence of asthma among children (12% or higher) may use grants to support mobile clinics, distance learning, and telemedicine to increase access to asthma diagnosis, treatment, and education. Grantees may award subgrants to schools, hospitals, or other organizations to achieve the goals of the program. The CDC must also study issues related to asthma in rural areas.