Representative Urban Leads Forum on Childhood Lead Poisoning in Stonington

STONINGTON, CT – Children’s Committee House Chair Diana Urban (D-Stonington) led a Children’s and Public Health Committees joint forum on childhood lead poisoning Monday at the Legislative Office Building.

The forum was held to review Connecticut’s current efforts to screen children for lead and the progress made in reducing childhood lead poisoning, according to a release.

Connecticut has required health care providers to conduct annual blood lead screenings for children under age three since 2009. Approximately 60,000 Connecticut children under age 6 were reported with lead exposure in 2013.

“Connecticut has made great progress in reducing the number of instances of lead poisoning in children, but we still have work to do,” Urban said on a release. “The health impacts of lead poisoning can be devastating and long-lasting – one affected child is still too many. I’d like to thank the Department of Public Health for providing an in-depth presentation on the scope of this issue, and I look forward to working with them to explore additional prevention efforts.”

The Department of Public Health (DPH), which monitors lead screening compliance, gave presentations on current prevention efforts as well as the number of children in Connecticut affected by lead exposure.

The biggest source of exposure in Connecticut is lead paint often found in older homes. Young children are most at risk for lead exposure, which can cause irreversible developmental delays and learning difficulties.

Additional information on childhood lead poisoning can be found in the 2014 report from the DPH Lead and Healthy Homes Program.

Image via House Democrats Office.