UCLA Center for Health Policy Research

This in-depth report describes asthma in California based on data from the 2001 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS 2001), the largest state-level health survey in the nation. It examines the prevalence of asthma, access to care for those with asthma, emergency room use and hospitalization for asthma, and disparities in and consequences of frequent asthma symptoms among California's children and adults. The policy report provides several recommendations including on-going surveillance of asthma, improving control of asthma through the reduction of environmental triggers, reducing disparities in the burden of asthma, and suggesting community-based, culturally appropriate interventions.