Asthma hospital discharge rate per 10,000 people between 2008 and 2010 were downloaded from the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH); website: http://www.health.ny.gov/statistics/ny_asthma/hosp/zipcode/onond_t6.htm.

The dataset includes hospital discharge rates for asthma per 10,000 people for the total population and the populations 0 to 17, 18 to 64, and 65 and above. These data were originally gathered by the Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS) and were used to create publicly accessible ZIP code level data for asthma hospital discharge rates organized by counties within New York State. Data for a ZIP code that crosses county boundaries are allocated to one county only (the county that contains the largest geographic portion of that ZIP code).

The data have several limitations. First, the data are aggregated to ZIP code to protect confidentiality. ZIP codes are a problematic geographic unit because they do not align with city, town, census tract, county, or neighborhood boundaries, making geographical comparisons difficult. Second, these data only account for the people who seek treatment through the emergency room. There may be people who have asthma that simply go to a primary care provider, rather than seek care at a hospital. Similarly, cases may be so few in some ZIP codes that the rate is unstable. Third, asthma is a disease that has a wide range of factors that can lead to its onset. The literature indicates there is a correlation between canopy cover and asthma, but causation cannot be assumed from maps of asthma and canopy cover.

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