Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #116743

John M. Hall, EPA Office of Radiation and Indoor Air, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, MC 6609J, Washington, DC 20460, (202) 343-9453, hall.johnm@epa.gov

The Environmental Protection Agency's Indoor Environments Program sponsors a number of partnerships, training programs and projects which encourage the public to take actions that reduce their exposure to indoor pollutants and triggers. These actions are known to be effective approaches for reducing exposure, which in turn will lead to positive health impacts. Increased emphasis within the government on measuring health outcomes of its programs requires that the agency estimate the health outcomes attributable to its indoor air program. EPA faces challenges in quantifying the health benefits of its program, as actions are taken voluntarily by the public, and there is no required monitoring or reporting as in many regulatory programs.

In response to these challenges, EPA measures the actions taken as a result of its programs, and models the health impacts associated with those actions. EPA uses national surveys to identify overall trends in actions taken to reduce exposure. For example, in 2003 EPA conducted a national survey of people with asthma to determine the actions taken to reduce exposure to environmental triggers of asthma. EPA also collects data on actions taken as a result of its specific partnerships, training programs, and products. Using information from the literature, such as the results from clinical intervention studies, and studies of relative and attributable risk, EPA estimates the projected health benefits of these actions. This presentation will outline those efforts, and report on progress to date and planned future work.

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