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Linn County, Iowa, Public Health Receives $29,985 EPA Grant for Asthma Education Program

Release Date: 10/11/2012
Contact Information: David Bryan, 913-551-7433, [email protected]

Environmental News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Lenexa, Kan., Oct. 11, 2012) - The Environmental Protection Agency has announced that Linn County, Iowa, Public Health will receive $29,985 for an asthma education program for health care providers, caregivers and asthma sufferers. The funding is part of a combined $1.2 million in funding to 32 state and local governments, tribes, and non-profit organizations for indoor air quality projects across the nation.

The Linn County Public Health program will focus on training for health care providers on the management of indoor environmental asthma triggers in a classroom setting. The program will also educate caregivers and persons with asthma on indoor triggers by providing in-home environmental assessments. Linn County’s program emphasizes assisting low-income and minority families that are disproportionately impacted by poor indoor air quality.

“EPA is proud to be working with our awardees across the nation to improve the air we breathe at school, work and home,” said Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. “American communities face serious health and environmental challenges from air pollution. This effort gives us an opportunity to improve indoor air quality by increasing awareness of environmental health risks.”

Indoor air pollutants in homes, buildings, and schools can negatively impact the health of occupants. Some pollutants cause health problems such as sore eyes, burning in the nose and throat, headaches or fatigue. Others can cause worsen allergies, respiratory illnesses (such as asthma) or even cancer (from radon gas).

The projects will help improve indoor air quality and reduce the associated health risks by:

• Increasing effective indoor air quality practices through community-level education and outreach
• Promoting positive indoor air quality management practices in schools by working with school districts and teachers
• Increasing the number of homes tested for radon, homes built with radon-resistant features, and existing homes mitigated for radon
• Creating awareness to reduce asthma triggers in the home and encourage the use of asthma management plans through community-based asthma programs