What's New with AAFA

October is Indoor Air Quality Awareness Month . Since your indoor air can be more polluted than outdoor air, this month is a good time to make sure you are taking the right steps to create healthier air in your home. Your home should be a haven for you and your family. But unfortunately, it may be filled with allergy and asthma triggers that can impact your health. Common allergens found in homes include animal dander , dust mites , pests , pollen and mold . Common irritants found in homes...

Since he was a baby, Devin Bush of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, has dealt with asthma, food allergies, eczema and pollen allergies. Through the years with the help of his mom, Tracy Bush, he has had to learn how to transition from reliance to self-management.

Schools provide valuable education to students. But the very resource that is supposed to benefit our children can actually be a cause of asthma symptoms and allergic reactions. Some states have policies in place that protect children with asthma and allergies. These 15 states made our 2019 State Honor Roll™ of Asthma and Allergy Policies for Schools (SHR). See how your state ranks.

The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) met with the Office of the General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). We spoke with members of their Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings and Consumer Protection Division on behalf of people with asthma and allergies. We shared how critical it is that people with asthma and allergies who have to be on planes with emotional support animals have equal rights.

AAFA released the My Life With Food Allergy: Parent Survey Report. This report summarizes the emotional, social and financial impact on the parent or caregiver of a child with food allergies.

AAFA has joined with four other nonprofit organizations that serve people with eczema to launch “More Than Skin Deep.” This project will inform and shape the development of treatments for eczema. A main part the project is a patient-focused drug development (PFDD) meeting on Sept. 23, 2019, in Washington, D.C.

Growing up, Jerica Gordon’s sister had asthma, but she does not remember her having any asthma attacks. “So when my son was having trouble breathing, I thought it was just congestion or something. There was no wheezing that I remember hearing,” she shared. In November 2016, Jerica took her son Jonathan Robinson, Jr., then age 5, to the emergency room.

On June 11, 2019, in Oakland, California, the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) and its California Technology Assessment Forum (CTAF) met to assess the clinical effectiveness and value of treatments for peanut allergy. The review examined two new technologies to induce immune tolerance — Viaskin® Peanut (DBV Technologies) and AR101 (Aimmune Therapeutics) — as well as non-commercialized oral immunotherapy (OIT).

Four years ago, Deborah Bartlett of New Haven, Connecticut (overall #11 on Asthma Capitals), was diagnosed with severe persistent asthma. Combined with her pollen and mold allergies, as well as COPD, breathing can be a real challenge.

Jessica Barber Brown and her son Isaac, age 11, live about 45 minutes outside of Louisville, Kentucky (overall #7 on Asthma Capitals), in Lawrenceburg. Both Jessica and Isaac have asthma and allergies.

Asthma is the third-leading cause of hospital stays in children. Hospitalizations among children are higher during Asthma Peak Week in September when children return to school and are exposed to more asthma triggers, allergens and respiratory infections.

We urge Congress to support the School-Based Allergies and Asthma Management Program Act (H.R. 2468) to put important protections in place for children with asthma and allergies.