Lawmakers seek lead tests for children

AUGUSTA – A state report about lead exposure and a firsthand brush with the issue have convinced a Portland lawmaker to push for a law to screen more Maine children for lead poisoning.

Rep. Glenn Cummings said he and fellow Portland Democratic state Rep. Ben Dudley plan to introduce legislation in January calling for universal screenings by pediatricians for lead levels in children’s blood.

A recent state Human Services Department report said Maine children have higher levels of lead in their blood than the national average.

The report said all 1- and 2-year-old Maine children should be tested for lead because so many of the state’s houses were built before 1960, when lead paint was widely used.

But the report says doctors rarely screen more than 30 percent of even those children defined as being at high risk of lead poisoning, and that follow-up practices are lax.

Cummings said he and his wife have seen the problem firsthand.

“After several years of renovations to our house, we discovered that our oldest child had lead levels twice the federal standard,” Cummings said. “It was a very scary time.”

The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has determined that a blood lead level of 10 micrograms of lead or more per deciliter requires monitoring and action.

The report on Maine blood lead level screenings showed that 23 percent of Maine children who had levels of more than 70 did not receive follow-up exams without intervention by the state Bureau of Health.

At that level, lead can cause seizures, coma or death. Lead exposure has also been linked to delayed development and learning disabilities, lower IQs and attention deficit disorder.

Legislation envisioned by Cummings and Dudley would promote universal blood-lead screenings of children 6 and under.

The lawmakers also hope to increase the number of doctors who do risk assessments to check for high lead levels. The state currently offers financial incentives to doctors who test children for lead.

According to Cummings and Dudley, one out of every nine youths in Maine has excessive lead levels, which adds up to 1,000 children in Portland alone. Another 6,000 to 8,000 children could join them this year, they said.

The two lawmakers said their proposal is supported by the Maine Medical Association and Maine Lead Action Project.