ODH: Lead a ‘serious health risk,’ target for programs | News, Sports, Jobs

PROTECTING KIDS — A billboard posted by the Ohio Department of Health along North Third Street in Steubenville invites viewers to visit the agency’s web page for resources regarding lead exposure prevention. — Christopher Dacanay

STEUBENVILLE — Drivers may have noticed a couple of billboards in the city regarding lead poisoning education and prevention.

One on North Third Street — bearing a teddy bear cartoon and stamped with the Ohio Department of Health logo — advises area residents: “Protect your kids from lead paint” and encourages visiting odh.ohio.gov/lead.

Another on Sunset Boulevard depicts an anthropomorphic brain, with the caption “Don’t be a lead head.” The billboard instructs viewers to “Get the facts” and have their homes, water and children tested. Along with ODH is advertised the Jefferson County General Health District, listed with its 500 Market St., sixth floor, address and office phone number: (740) 283-8530.

One may ponder the billboards and ask, “Why care about lead?”

A naturally occurring metal found in the Earth’s crust, lead is extremely toxic, according to a YouTube video from the Jefferson County Health Department. In the video, Health Commissioner Andrew Henry states that 20 out of 23 Jefferson County ZIP codes have been identified as high-risk for lead, with the metal having been used in construction materials like paint until 1978, when it was outlawed.

LEAD HEAD — A billboard along Sunset Boulevard in Steubenville, posted by the Ohio Department of Health and Jefferson County General Health District, promotes testing for lead contamination or exposure. — Christopher Dacanay

According to Ken Gordon, press secretary for ODH’s office of communications: “Lead is a serious health risk in Ohio, which is why Gov. Mike DeWine and (ODH) have committed much time and resources to combat the problem.”

Children under 6 years old and babies in utero are the most sensitive to lead exposure because their brains and nervous systems are still developing and they can absorb lead easily, Gordon said. Since children are inclined to place items in their mouths, they may be exposed to chipped lead paint or dust containing lead in a pre-1978 home.

In children’s bodies, Gordon said, lead can replace iron and calcium and “cause learning and behavior problems, difficulty paying attention in school, anemia, lower IQ, attention disorders, delayed growth, impaired hearing and more. These problems can last the child’s whole life.”

One of many ways ODH is combating the lead issue is through the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, Gordon said.

Begun in November 2021, the program’s purpose is to mitigate lead hazards through “lead-based paint risk assessments/inspections, repair of lead hazards by a licensed lead abatement contractor, a clearance examination of the lead hazard control work performed by a licensed lead risk assessor,” Gordon said.

The program seeks to identify and repair other minor home-related health and safety issues, including “installing carbon monoxide/smoke detectors, installing handrails, correcting minor electrical issues, repairing slip/trip/fall hazards and performing radon testing and mitigation.”

Covered by the program’s target area are 31 Ohio counties, more than half of which are on the state’s eastern side, including Jefferson, Harrison, Belmont, Carroll and Columbiana counties.

“Counties were generally chosen based on age of housing stock and the preponderance of children with elevated blood lead levels. … Consideration was also given to counties where little-to-no funding assistance from other sources exists for lead hazard control work. Counties that already have their own (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) grant could not be included in ODH’s target area per HUD rules.”

Per HUD’s income guidelines, the program is income-based and requires that a child under 6 years old reside in the unit or had spent at least six hours per week there in order for the unit to be eligible. When there is no young child associated with the property, the program permits no more than 10 percent of total units to receive abatement. Properties themselves must also have been built before 1978.

Those interested in the grant can call the Public Health Lead Investigation Program at (877) 532-3723 for pre-qualification screening.

Along with that program, the state has worked to reduce lead exposure among Ohioans through $90 million in funding announced within the last six months from the Lead Safe Ohio program, Gordon said.

Covering 76 counties, the collaborative program between ODH and the Ohio Department of Development was funded through House Bill 45 by the 134th Ohio General Assembly using American Rescue Plan Act funds.

The program is expected to award nearly $100 million for lead prevention activities, according to a March 20 release from the governor’s office. Made available to entities in all 88 counties, funding was based on “high-risk ZIP codes, the number of homes built before 1978 and the percentage of low-to-moderate-income households in the state,” according to the same.

The program’s most recent bout of funding aided projects like waterline, window and door replacement; siding and soffit enclosure, porch component repair and lead cleaning efforts.

Additionally, Gordon said, ODH “offers a myriad of lead-related programs; including a lead abatement tax credit, a SCHIP grant and a list of hazardous properties in Ohio whose owners have refused to comply with orders to correct known health hazards.”

Information on these programs and more can be found at odh.ohio.gov/lead and ODH’s housing resource page.

“These efforts are working,” Gordon said. “Since 2017, the percentage of children tested who had a confirmed blood-lead level of at least 5 micrograms per deciliter — which is considered an elevated blood-lead level — has fallen from 2.8 percent to 1.9 percent, a decrease of 32 percent.”

Gordon noted that ODH recommends blood lead testing at age 1 and 2 and up to age 6 for children living in high-risk areas or who meet other criteria, such as being on Medicaid. Other criteria can be found on the “For Parents” section of ODH’s “Childhood Lead Poisoning” web page. Individuals can click on the “Getting a Lead Test” tab to view.

The ODH, along with the CDC, recently lowered its blood lead reference value to 3.5 micrograms per deciliter, Gordon said, adding, “We look forward to seeing these numbers decline over the next few years.”