WADOHThis data is included as part of the Environmental Health Disparities Version 3.0 map. To see this map, visit our webpage . For more technical information on this map and the model used, visit our technical report (link) . Background People with asthma and other lung diseases are at a higher risk of experiencing health problems from air pollution. Air pollutants irritate the lungs and cause inflammation. This leads to decreased lung functioning. The result can be difficulty breathing, asthma attacks, and loss of life. Outdoor air pollution sources include vehicle exhaust, fire smoke, factory emissions, and pollen. Indoor air pollution can be caused by lack of filtration systems, cooking, pets, or mold. Not everyone has the same risk of air quality-related respiratory disease. Disparities in childhood asthma rates between racial and ethnic groups have increased over the last 10 years. Communities of color have childhood asthma rates 7.5 times higher than mostly white communities. We discuss disparities in pollution exposure that cause these disparities more in depth in our environmental exposure data notes. Climate-related risks, like wildfires and rising temperatures, increase air pollution and its effects on people's lungs. Communities of color are more impacted by climate change and its health effects. Evidence Multiple sources of air pollution worsen asthma by damaging the lungs and airways [1]. One study found traffic-related pollution was responsible for 14% of childhood asthma cases [2]. Outdoor air pollutants correlate with increased symptoms and death among people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [3]. Short-term exposure to ozone and particle pollution is associated with lower lung function in children [4]. Nitrogen dioxide pollution contributes to significantly higher rates of childhood asthma in communities of color. This disparity has increased by 19% over the past 10 years [5]. Overall air pollution exposure has decreased, but not everyone has benefited equally. Black, Hispanic, Asian, and other people of color are systemically exposed to more air pollution than whites. This is a lasting impact of racist housing policy [6]. Particle matter and ozone concentration increase with droughts, air stagnation, and wildfire severity. Extreme heat increases the toxic effect of allergens and pollutants [7]. Data source Rapid Health Information Network ( RHINO ) syndromic surveillance data on emergency department visits Methods This measure shows the age-adjusted rate of emergency department visits for "air quality-related respiratory illness" per 1,000 people. It includes visits with chief complaint terms and diagnosis codes for: Asthma Chronic obstructive airway disease Chronic obstructive lung disease Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Acute bronchitis Emphysema Bronc asthma Reactive airway disease Acute respiratory distress syndrome Difficulty breathing Chest tightness Dyspnea Shortness of breath Wheezing It does not include visits with complaints related to fever and congestion. This is to avoid including visits related to infectious disease. These visits are reported at the zip code level. To create this measure, we summed zip code counts by age group. We calculated the age-adjusted rate of emergency department visits per 1,000 people for each zip code. We use the age-adjusted rate to account for differences in population age. Older people are more likely to experience cardiovascular events, and communities have different age distributions. Age-adjusted rates ensure that the differences we see between communities are not due to differences in the ages of their populations. To get census tract rates, we multiplied zip code rates by the proportion of people in each census tract within a zip code. Caveats This measure does not capture the full burden of lung conditions in the population. It only counts emergency department visits. People who are able to control their asthma with medications prescribed by their primary care doctor and people who do not seek health care are not accounted for in this measure. Sources Guarnieri M, Balmes JR. Outdoor air pollution and asthma. Lancet. 2014 May 3;383(9928):1581-92. Perez L, Declercq C, Iniguez C, et al. Chronic burden of near-roadway traffic pollution in 10 European cities (APHEKOM network) Eur Respir J. 2013;42:594-605. Hansel, N. N., McCormack, M. C., & Kim, V. (2015). The Effects of Air Pollution and Temperature on COPD. COPD: Journal of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, 13(3), 372-379. Garcia E, Rice MB, Gold DR. Air pollution and lung function in children. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2021 Jul;148(1):1-14. Kerr GH, van Donkelaar A, Martin RV, et al. (2024). Increasing racial and ethnic disparities in ambient air pollution—attributable morbidity and mortality in the United States. Environ Health Perspect . 132(3):37002. Tessum, C. W., Paolella, D. A., Chambliss, S. E., Apte, J. S., Hill, J. D., & Marshall, J. D. (2021). PM2. 5 polluters disproportionately and systemically affect people of color in the United States. Science Advances, 7(18), eabf4491. Deng, S. Z., Jalaludin, B. B., Antó , J. M., Hess, J. J., & Huang, C. R. (2020). Climate change, air pollution, and allergic respiratory diseases: a call to action for health professionals. Chinese medical journal, 133(13), 1552-1560. Citation Washington Tracking Network, Washington State Department of Health. Web. "Air Quality-Related Respiratory Disease". Data obtained from the Rapid Health Information Network ( RHINO ) , 2023 E mergency Department Visits Data. Published September 2025.ArcGIS FeatureLayerhttps://hub.arcgis.com/datasets/fcd045e3909e46888ecffd14369132e4_0engState of Washington Geospatial Open Data PortalPublicAir Quality-Related Respiratory Disease [Washington (State)]Web servicesWashington (State)Last Modified: 2025-07-21