RESCUE Illinois Schools

In Illinois, approximately 120,000 children have an asthma attack each year,
leading to thousands of avoidable school absences and hospitalizations.

AAFA – St. Louis wants to get you the resources you need to help keep children in the classroom and out of emergency rooms. After running RESCUE for 12 years in the Greater St. Louis metro area (including several Illinois Counties), AAFA will be expanding the program statewide and getting lifesaving asthma resources to public schools across Missouri.

Now fully funded, the program is launching in time for the 2023-2024 school year.

Legislation

Thanks to Public Act 100-0726, schools across the state are allowed to store and administer “undesignated” asthma medication. This year, the program is launching in approximately 2,600 public school across the state of Illinois. We’re excited to partner with your school!

RESCUE Illinois School is generously funded by a grant administered by the Illinois State Board of Education. This grant enables AAFA to obtain community and school district-wide prescriptions, purchase asthma equipment, and train and support school officials.

Get started today

We’re excited to partner with your school and to get equipment and resources into every community.

Program Details

RESCUE is an asthma intervention program for schools that helps keep children with asthma in the classroom and out of emergency rooms.

Thanks to Public Act 100-0726, schools in Illinois are allowed to store and administer “undesignated” asthma medication to students, staff, and school visitors experiencing a medical emergency. For some school districts, getting a standing order, filling out a prescription or procuring equipment has been challenging.

With a grant from the Illinois Department of Human Services, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America chapter in Missouri will be able to give asthma equipment to the majority of public K-12 schools in Illinois. We have been operating the RESCUE program for 12 years in the St. Louis metro area and have proven experience working with providers, pharmacists, and school districts to keep kids safe.

RESCUE Materials

The RESCUE program has three packages:

  • medication package with a 3 metered dose inhalers with albuterol .
  • An equipment package with 3 chambers and 10 disposable spacers
  • An education box with 1 peak flow meter and a storage tote bag

Schools with higher enrollment and higher asthma risk will receive multiple sets of medication and equipment.

To see how exactly what your school or school district is eligible for, please check out school allocation spreadsheet.

Training

We are currently offering an on-demand training to begin using the medication and equipment. As live trainings (virtual or in-person) are scheduled, they will be listed on this site. Register below:

On-Demand Option
Register Passcode: @^M08=ev

If you would like to schedule a virtual or in-person training for your school district and/or region, please contact AAFA’s Director of Programs, Naomi Soto: nsoto@aafastl.org.

Please note that this training is available for all who are interested, including those who may not dispense medication in schools.

Other Important Links:

Download our Program Flyer, FAQ and Handbook below: