BACKGROUND Childhood asthma prevalence doubled from 1980 to 1995 and then increased more slowly from 2001 to 2010. During this second period, racial disparities increased. More recent trends remain to be described. METHODS We analyzed current asthma prevalence using 2001–2013 National Health Interview Survey data for children ages 0 to 17 years. Logistic regression with quadratic terms was used to test for nonlinear patterns in trends. Differences between demographic subgroups were further assessed with multivariate models controlling for gender, age, poverty status, race/ethnicity, urbanicity, and geographic region. RESULTS Overall, childhood asthma prevalence increased from 2001 to 2009 followed by a plateau then a decline in 2013. From 2001 to 2013, multivariate logistic regression showed no change in prevalence among non-Hispanic white and Puerto Rican children and those in the Northeast and West; increasing prevalence among 10- to 17-year-olds, poor children, and those living in the South; increasing then plateauing prevalence among 5- to 9-year-olds, near-poor children, and non-Hispanic black children; and increasing then decreasing prevalence among 0- to 4-year-olds, nonpoor, and Mexican children and those in the Midwest. Non-Hispanic black-white disparities stopped increasing, and Puerto Rican children remained with the highest prevalence. CONCLUSIONS Current asthma prevalence ceased to increase among children in recent years and the non-Hispanic black-white disparity stopped increasing due mainly to plateauing prevalence among non-Hispanic black children.

Background Racial disparities in childhood asthma have been a long-standing target for intervention, especially disparities in hospitalization and mortality. Objectives Describe trends in racial disparities in asthma outcomes using both traditional population-based rates and at-risk rates (based on the estimated number of children with asthma) to account for prevalence differences between race groups. Methods Estimates of asthma prevalence and outcomes (emergency department visits, hospitalizations and deaths) were calculated from national data for 2001 to 2010 for black and white children. Trends were calculated using weighted log-linear regression, and changes in racial disparities over time were assessed using Joinpoint. Results Disparities in asthma prevalence between black and white children increased from 2001 to 2010; at the end of this period, black children were twice as likely as white children to have asthma. Population-based rates showed that disparities in asthma outcomes remained stable (ED visits and hospitalizations) or increased (asthma attack prevalence, deaths). In contrast, analysis with at-risk rates which account for differences in asthma prevalence showed that disparities in asthma outcomes either remained stable (deaths), decreased (ED visits, hospitalizations), or did not exist (asthma attack prevalence). Conclusion Using at-risk rates to assess racial disparities in asthma outcomes accounts for prevalence differences between black and white children, and adds another perspective to the population-based examination of asthma disparities. An at-risk rate analysis shows that among children with asthma, there is no disparity for asthma attack prevalence, and that progress has been made in decreasing disparities in asthma ED visit and hospitalization rates.

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Objectives To examine whether access to housing assistance is associated with better health among low-income adults. Methods We used National Health Interview Survey data (1999–2012) linked to US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) administrative records (1999–2014) to examine differences in reported fair or poor health and psychological distress. We used multivariable models to compare those currently receiving HUD housing assistance (public housing, housing choice vouchers, and multifamily housing) with those who will receive housing assistance within 2 years (the average duration of HUD waitlists) to account for selection into HUD assistance. Results We found reduced odds of fair or poor health for current public housing (odds ratio [OR] = 0.77; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.57, 0.97) and multifamily housing (OR = 0.75; 95% CI = 0.60, 0.95) residents compared with future residents. Public housing residents also had reduced odds of psychological distress (OR = 0.59; 95% CI = 0.40, 0.86). These differences were not mediated by neighborhood-level characteristics, and we did not find any health benefits for current housing choice voucher recipients. Conclusions Housing assistance is associated with improved health and psychological well-being for individuals entering public housing and multifamily housing programs.

Infection prevalence in HHC, hospice, and NH populations is similar. Although these infections may be community acquired or acquired during earlier healthcare exposures, these findings fill an important gap in understanding the national infection burden and may help inform future research on infection epidemiology and prevention strategies in long-term care populations.

We examined mental health related visits to emergency departments (EDs) among children from 2001 to 2011. We used the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey—Emergency Department, 2001–2011 to identify visits of children 6 to 20 years old with a reason-for-visit code or ICD-9-CM diagnosis code reflecting mental health issues. National percentages of total visits, visit counts, and population rates were calculated, overall and by race, age, and sex. ED visits for mental health issues increased from 4.4% of all visits in 2001 to 7.2% in 2011. Counts increased 55,000 visits per year and rates increased from 13.6 visits/1000 population in 2001 to 25.3 visits/1000 in 2011 (p<0.01 for all trends). Black children (all ages) had higher visit rates than white children and 13–20 year olds had higher visit rates than children 6–12 years old (p<0.01 for all comparisons). Differences between groups did not decline over time.

Health-related quality of life in the United States is poorest for children and youth in lower socioeconomic status groups, those with access barriers, adolescents compared with children, and individuals with medical conditions. A multidimensional health-related quality-of-life index is an alternative to conventional measures (eg, mortality) for national monitoring of child health.

Between 1988 and 2008, the use of PAM increased among children with current asthma. Non-Hispanic black and Mexican American children, adolescents aged 12 to 19 years, and uninsured children with current asthma had lower use of PAM.