Improving Childhood Asthma Outcomes in the United States

Over the course of 2000, RAND Health engaged an interdisciplinary committee of nationally recognized leaders in childhood asthma in a structured group process to arrive at the policy recommendations proposed in Improving Childhood Asthma Outcomes in the United States: A Blueprint for Policy Action, by M. Lara, W. Nicholas, S. Morton, M. Vaiana, B. Genovese, and G. Rachelefsky, RAND, MR-1330, 2001. That report summarizes the findings of an effort funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, to 1) Identify a range of policy actions in both the public and private sectors that could improve childhood asthma outcomes nationwide, 2) Select a subset of policies to create a blueprint for national policy in this area, 3) Outline alternatives to implement these policies that build on prior efforts. This effort is part of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Pediatric Asthma Initiative. The purpose of this initiative is to address current gaps in national childhood asthma care through clinical and nonclinical approaches to improve the management of childhood asthma. It is the first national initiative that simultaneously addresses treatment, policy, and financing issues for children with asthma at the patient, provider, and institutional levels.