A hearing for HB 342, which would establish a blood lead level testing requirement for children entering day care and public schools, is being held at 2:00 today in front of the NH House Health, Human Services, and Elderly Affairs Committee.
Here in Keene, I've been pushing the City to work with Sullivan and Cheshire Counties to apply for grant funding available through HUD that would help homeowners and landlords address the lead paint hazard in older homes. In 2021, Sullivan County received $1.7 million to fund lead abatement projects in 60 homes, and expanding that program to Cheshire County is a huge opportunity to make our housing safer for the children to live there.
In December, I had this to say before a Keene City Council committee:
Looking at data provided by the New Hampshire Division of Public Health Services, for recent years in Keene, every year there have been from 10 to 14 cases of children under 6 years old diagnosed with elevated blood lead levels – that is, cases detected where there is more than 5 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood. That’s about half a classroom full of kids every year.
I would note that this is the number of cases detected – there are certainly undetected cases out there, as well as cases where children are affected by lead levels lower than that 5 microgram threshold. There is no safe level of lead in children’s blood.
HB 342 - sponsored by Rep. Nancy Murphy (D-Merrimack) and co-sponsored by Keene Rep. Jodi Newell, among others - would reduced the number of undetected cases of lead poisoning and provide better data with with to address this problem.
The bill would help to make sure that all students in New Hampshire, except for the few who opt out for religious reasons, are tested for lead, which would enable children who test positive to get services they need to help overcome the challenges they may face due to lead poisoning.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, the effects of lead poisoning in children can include damage to the brain and nervous system, slowed growth and development, learning and behavior problems, and hearing and speech problem.
You can help by signing in remotely to the hearing on Thursday to support HB 342 in the House Health, Human Services, and Elderly Affairs Committee, or by sending an email to the committee at HHSEA@leg.state.nh.us