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NYC Healthy Neighborhoods Program: Home Assessments of Asthma Triggers

How to Submit Referrals

The Healthy Neighborhoods Program is accepting referrals from health care providers for children and adults with persistent asthma who have pests or mold in the home.

Providers can submit referrals through the Citywide Immunization Registry or by faxing the following form:


Allergens such as pests (for example, mice, rats, or cockroaches) and mold growth affect indoor air quality. They can cause asthma attacks or make asthma symptoms worse. Controlling pests and mold can help control asthma.

The NYC Healthy Neighborhoods Program (HNP) can help children and adults with persistent asthma by identifying these asthma triggers in the home and finding ways to address them. This includes safely fixing the problems that cause them, such as leaks and cracks.

Free Home Assessments

If you or your child has persistent asthma and you have pests or mold in your home, your health care provider can request a free home environmental inspection for you. You can receive this service regardless of your immigration status.

If Health Department staff find environmental asthma triggers or other home health hazards, they will work with property owners to correct the problems. New York City law requires property owners to keep their buildings and tenants’ homes free of pests and mold and the problems that cause them, including leaks and holes.

Eligibility

You can only get a home assessment if a health care provider refers you to HNP.

You are eligible for a free home assessment if you or your child:

  • Has been diagnosed with persistent asthma.
  • Are a city resident and live in a rental home that has pests or mold (not including mold on tile or grout).
  • Allow HNP to work with the property owner to correct the problem.

If your health care provider says you are eligible for this program, ask them to refer you or your child to HNP through the Citywide Immunization Registry (CIR).

You can print out the following form and give it to your health care provider during your next visit:

If you do not have a health care provider, you can find one through NYC Health + Hospitals or call 311 for more information.

If you are a residential property owner, manager or building maintenance worker and would like more information on safely controlling and removing indoor allergen hazards in tenant homes, email NYCHNP@health.nyc.gov or call 311.

If you are a tenant without persistent asthma and have a water leak, signs of mold growth or pests in your home, notify your landlord immediately. If your landlord does not fix the problem quickly, or if repair work is not being done safely, file a complaint online or call 311.

What To Expect from a Home Assessment

When a provider refers you for a home environmental visit:

  • A New York City Health Department inspector will call you to schedule a visit on a day and time that works for you.
  • The inspector will look for pests and mold and the problems that lead to them.
  • If problems are found, the inspector will order the building owner to fix them. The building owner will have 21 days to make any needed repairs.
  • After 21 days, a Health Department inspector will return to your home to see if the problems were fixed.
  • If the building owner has not finished fixing the problems but is making progress, they will be given more time to make the repairs.
  • If the building owner is not fixing the problem, the Health Department may issue them a summons, which can result in a fine. The City may also make emergency repairs and bill the building owner for the work.

For more information, call 646-632-6023.

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