26:2-137.2 Findings, declarations relative to lead exposure of children.

1. The Legislature finds and declares that:

a. According to the New Jersey Department of Health, 630,000 children under the age of six are at risk of lead poisoning in New Jersey and should be screened for elevated blood lead levels. Of this number, the Department of Health estimates that 177,000 pre-school children are at particularly high risk of lead poisoning;

b. Approximately 70,000 pre-school children, or almost 10 percent of the population of children under age six, are currently screened for lead poisoning;

c. Screening is an essential element in the fight to reduce and eventually eliminate childhood lead poisoning, and identification of children in the early stages of lead exposure can prevent children from suffering severe cases of lead poisoning;

d. There is no safe level of lead exposure in children, and even low levels of lead in the bloodstream have been shown to affect IQ, attention span, and academic achievement, in a manner that cannot be corrected;

e. Although lead can be found in many sources, lead exposure is entirely preventable, and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recognizes that the best way to address the problem of lead poisoning is to take action to prevent children from coming into contact with lead, while providing appropriate treatment and case management to those children who are found to have elevated blood lead levels;

f. A universal lead screening program will identify which children require medical evaluation and treatment, and will alert parents about the need to identify and abate lead hazards in their homes;

g. The integration of educational and community outreach programs, as part of a universal lead screening program, will raise public consciousness about the insidious dangers of childhood lead poisoning, encourage parents to take preventive steps to make their homes lead-safe, and encourage communities to strengthen lead exposure prevention programs; and

h. Universal lead screening and universal reporting of lead test results will allow the Department of Health and local boards of health to obtain information on neighborhoods and communities that are at a high risk for lead exposure, and thereby allow for the implementation of targeted lead hazard reduction programs in the areas of greatest need.

L.1995, c.328, s.1; amended 2017, c.7, s.3.