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IN THIS ISSUE:
The Rhode Island Legislature recently approved landmark legislation
to hold landlords accountable if a child is poisoned by lead
hazards in their properties. The bill, sponsored by Senator
Thomas Izzo (D) and Representative Joseph Almeida (D), overwhelmingly
passed in the House with a 72-to-18 vote and had previously
been approved by the Senate. Under this new law, landlords
can no longer claim “ignorance” as a defense against
liability for children’s health. The measure requires
public notice of properties considered unsafe for children
and orders landlords to post signs on their properties declaring
them unsafe for small children. The Health Department must
issue rules to prevent landlords from retaliating against
tenants who file lead-paint complaints. The Governor, a strong
supporter of this measure, is expected to sign the bill. Congratulations
to the Childhood Lead Action Project, Rhode Island Kids Count,
and the HELP Lead Safe Center for their organizing and advocacy
efforts! The bill is available online at www.rilin.state.ri.us/Billtext/BillText02/SenateText02/S2813Aaa.pdf.
On June 7, 2002, the United States Court of Appeals for the
D.C. Circuit upheld EPA regulations setting hazard standards
for lead in residential paint, dust and soil. Three rental
housing trade associations had challenged the standards, arguing
that EPA lacks authority to regulate lead levels in dust and
soil, unless the source of the lead is paint. EPA contended
that it has the power to set standards for lead-contaminated
dust and soil, regardless of the source. In challenging the
rule, the trade associations sought to limit property owners'
duty under Title X to disclose known lead hazards when selling
or renting pre-1978 housing. They argued that they should
not be required to disclose dust and soil hazards of unknown
source, while at the same time conceding that no technology
exists to determine the source of lead contamination in dust
and soil.
This ruling by the Court of Appeals clarifies the duty of
residential property owners to disclose known lead hazards
when they sell or rent pre-1978 housing. The EPA standards
also govern properties receiving federal assistance and serve
as a benchmark to guide responsible action for making U.S.
housing lead-safe.
The May 2002 issue of the American Journal of Public Health (Vol. 92,
No. 5) contains a number of research studies, a field action report and
editorials highlighting the connection between children’s health
and housing. Articles explore the relationship between housing age and
childhood blood lead levels; advances in California for clean indoor air;
the impact of inadequate housing on poor health conditions; lead awareness
in North Philadelphia; and environmental asthma interventions. To order
this issue, visit www.ajph.org
or contact APHA Subscription Department at ajph.subscriptions@apha.org.
CDC recently released the first updated guidance on case
management of children with elevated blood lead levels in
over a decade. The new report, Managing Elevated Blood Lead
Levels Among Young Children: Recommendations from the Advisory
Committee on Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention, was written
primarily for those who provide or oversee case management
for children with elevated blood lead levels and fills a large
void faced by programs seeking practical guidance about effective
interventions. Where possible, the recommendations are based
on the results of evidence-based studies. The report contains
an introduction that provides an overview of case management
and offers specific guidance in environmental, medical, nutritional,
and developmental interventions, as well as parental education.
For additional information, visit CDC's web site at www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead.
The Community Environmental Health Resource Center and the
Alliance are pleased to announce that 17 organizations have
been selected to receive grants to advance healthy homes.
Ten organizations will receive Implementation Grants totaling
$885,000 to undertake assessments for lead and other housing-related
health hazards in high-risk housing and to use the results
to advance prevention – Baltimore ACORN; Cleveland Tenants
Organization and Environmental Health Watch; Connecticut Citizen
Research Group, Hartford; De Madres a Madres, Houston, TX;
Environmental Health Coalition, San Diego, CA; Louisiana ACORN,
New Orleans; Northeast Denver Housing Center; Northern Manhattan
Improvement Corporation; Project 504, Minneapolis, MN; and
Westside Health Authority, Chicago, IL
Seven organizations will receive Scoping Grants totaling
$130,000 to explore how environmental sampling tools and strategies
can support organizational objectives and help meet critical
community needs. Those grantees are Asian Pacific Environmental
Network, Oakland, CA; Concerned Clergy Foundation, Indianapolis,
IN; Durham Affordable Housing Coalition, Durham, NC; Greensboro
Housing Coalition, Greensboro, NC; Lumbee Regional Development
Association, Pembroke, NC; Pacoima Beautiful, Pacoima, CA;
and St. Peter’s Housing Committee, San Francisco, CA.
Local project activities and outcomes will be documented
so that lessons can be learned to help bridge the gap between
the real world needs of communities at highest risk and scientific
advances in assessing and remedying health hazards in housing.
For more information, visit www.cehrc.org.
The Bush Administration announced recently that it would
not change federal policy on oversight of blood lead screening
for children enrolled in Medicaid. Despite signals to the
contrary by staff of the Center for Medicaid and Medicare
Services (CMS), Director Tom Scully reported that the agency
had no intention of abandoning its oversight. Health and Human
Services (HHS) Director Tommy Thompson said that he would
rely on HHS’s Advisory Committee and CDC for policy
recommendations for blood lead screening.
The Alliance and the National Health Law Program would like
to thank the more than 500 national, state and local organizations
and individuals who joined in a letter urging Secretary Thompson
not to abandon the agency’s oversight to help ensure
that high-risk children are screened for lead poisoning. This
overwhelming show of support helped convince 55 Members of
Congress to register their protest with HHS as well.
The urgent need remains for strong federal leadership, since
most state Medicaid programs fail to screen children for lead
poisoning as required by federal law.
On May 15, New York’s Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals
reversed a lower court's decision that had declared private
parties have no right to sue state agencies to force compliance
with Medicaid's EPSDT (Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis,
and Treatment) requirements – of which Medicaid lead
screening is a part. This decision makes it possible for one
or more families to sue their state Medicaid agency to force
them to ensure compliance with federal requirements that all
Medicaid enrolled children be screened for lead poisoning
at 1 and 2 years of age. Presently only about 20% of such
children are screened according to figures supplied by states.
The decision is Westside Mothers v. Haveman, and is available
on the Court's website at http://pacer.ca6.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/getopn.pl?OPINION=02a0172p.06.
On June 13, the New York Public Interest Research Group,
along with several groups including the New York City Environmental
Justice Alliance, West Harem Environmental Action, Make the
Road by Walking, and the New York City Council’s Black,
Latino, and Asian Caucus, held a well-attended press conference
to pressure targeted members of the New York City Council
to support a proposed lead poisoning prevention law. The report
displays lead poisoning data by City Council district in maps
to show which districts are hardest hit. The report's maps
and charts compare and contrast council district data on poisonings
with information about the position each council member has
taken to date on Introduction 101 (The Childhood Lead Poisoning
Prevention Act), a pending lead poisoning prevention ordinance.
The report’s sophisticated use of data and maps as an
advocacy tool offers a model for local advocates in other
cities and states. The full report is available on the web
at www.nypirg.org/lead/whereslead/.
For more information, contact Andy Goldberg at New York Public
Interest Research Group, 212-349-6460, agoldberg@nypirg.org.
In the June 2002 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives
(June 2002, Volume 110, Number 6), researchers quantify the
economic benefits from projected improvements in worker productivity
resulting from the reduction in children's exposure to lead
in the United States since 1976. According to their calculations,
overall future earnings of children who were 2 years old in
2000 will increase between $110 billion and $318 billion,
compared with their counterparts in the mid-1970s, as a result
of their reduced exposure to lead in the environment. The
abstract for this article, "Economic Gains Resulting
from the Reduction in Children's Exposure to Lead in the United
States," is available at http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/110p563-569grosse/abstract.html.
The July 2002 issue of EHP (Volume 110, Number 7) contains
an article about the high annual costs of lead poisoning and
other environmental impacts on US children. The article, "Environmental
Pollutants and Disease in American Children: Estimates of
Morbidity, Mortality, and Costs for Lead Poisoning, Asthma,
Cancer, and Developmental Disabilities," estimates annual
costs to be $54.9 billion -- $43.4 billion for lead poisoning,
$2.0 billion for asthma, $0.3 billion for childhood cancer,
and $9.2 billion for neurobehavioral disorders. This sum amounts
to 2.8 % of total U.S. health care costs. The abstract for
this article is available at http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/110p721-728landrigan/abstract.html.
The Western Center on Law and Poverty, a non-profit legal
services program devoted to high-impact poverty law litigation
and legislative advocacy in the state of California, recently
released “Preventing Childhood Lead Poisoning: Identifying
and Eliminating Local Barriers to Primary Prevention Strategies.”
The report explores barriers to primary prevention at the
local level and outlines low cost, easily implemented strategies
for local agencies and governments to prevent childhood lead
poisoning. The report also recommends advocacy by community-based
organizations, broader public education, and creative ideas
at the local level. The report is available online at www.wclp.org/advocates/housing/Preventing%20Lead%20Poisoning%20-%20Barriers%20and%20Solut.PDF.
The bipartisan Millennial Housing Commission has presented
to Congress a comprehensive vision for the production and
preservation of more sustainable affordable housing in healthy
communities. This report calls for measures such as retooled
and new financial mechanisms; reforms to public housing, FHA,
and homelessness programs; and expansion of HUD’s housing
voucher and HOME programs.
The Commission also recommends that Congress repeal the Title
X requirement for abatement in HUD-funded housing rehab projects
that cost more than $25,000, stating that “HUD requirements
for lead safe work practices by contractors with basic training
in lead safety, followed by clearance testing, offer a better,
performance-based standard for most federally-funded housing
rehabilitation projects.” The commission also suggests
that requirements for lead hazard evaluation and control should
only apply to properties built before 1960 (instead of 1978),
recommending lead-safe work practices, clearance testing,
and lead hazard disclosure in post-1960 properties. For more
information, visit the Commission’s website at www.mhc.gov.
The City of Philadelphia recently pledged $1.5 million for
lead hazard reduction work in the city. These funds will address
extensive lead hazards in some 600 homes. An additional 1,400
homes in Philadelphia have been identified as having significant
health risks and are awaiting clean-up. The City also this
year expanded a program to sample lead dust hazards in the
homes of pregnant women and new parents. For more information
contact Colleen McCauley, Philadelphia Citizens for Children
and Youth, 215-563-5848, colleenmccauley@pccy.org.
The Community Economic Development Expertise Enhancement
Act 2002 (CEDA), H.R. 3974, would make available $75 million
per year over three years to provide capacity building funds
for community-based nonprofit development organizations to
leverage private sector investment in strategies to build
homes and create jobs in low-income communities. The National
Congress for Community Economic Development (NCCED), which
played a key role in crafting this plan, is gathering endorsements
from community-based organizations and seeking co-sponsors.
Visit www.ncced.org
to join the Alliance in endorsing CEDA and obtain
more information.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness’ annual
conference, “Homelessness: From Ideas to Action,”
will take place from July 17-20, 2002 in Washington, D.C.
at the Capital Hilton Hotel. HUD Secretary Mel Martinez will
deliver the keynote address on July 19. The conference will
feature training institutes, workshops, community planning
sessions and site visits to local Washington, DC providers.
The Alliance is a conference co-sponsor. For more information,
visit the conference website at www.endhomelessness.org
or contact The National Alliance to End Homelessness at 202-638-1526
or conference@naeh.org.
**For information on the Alliance’s international programs
and worldwide prevention activities, please visit our Global
Lead Network website at www.globalleadnet.org**
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