Children and National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week

Did you know that more than 85 percent of lead poisoning cases in Wisconsin are among children who are enrolled in Wisconsin Medicaid?

During National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week (October 22–28, 2023), the Wisconsin Department of Health Services encourages people to take steps to end childhood lead poisoning by getting the facts, helping children get tested for lead exposure, and checking homes for lead hazards.

Within the past 20 years, more than 230,000 Wisconsin children younger than 6 years old have been poisoned by lead. In addition, pregnant women exposed to lead can be harmed and their developing baby can also be exposed. Lead exposure injures the brain, nervous, and reproductive systems and results in:

• Developmental and growth delays.
• Hearing and speech problems.
• Difficulty learning and paying attention.
• Serious illness and death.

Health care providers should talk with parents and guardians of children under 6 years old about the risks of lead exposure and poisoning. Common ways that lead enters a child’s body include:

• Breathing in lead-contaminated dust, especially during home repairs or renovation.
• Swallowing lead dust on toys, floors, and windowsills.
• Eating lead-based paint chips or soil contaminated with lead.
• Drinking lead-contaminated water

Children enrolled in Wisconsin Medicaid are required by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to have a blood lead test at 12 months and 24 months. If a child has not been tested before, then one blood test is recommended between ages 3 and 5 years.

If a pregnant woman believes they may have been exposed to lead, then they should be assessed for risk to determine if a blood lead test is warranted.