WHAT IS THE RISK OF LEAD POISONING FOR ILLINOIS CHILDREN?
In 2000, more than 20,000 Illinois children had an elevated blood lead level (defined as blood lead >=10 µg/dL). Among children tested, one of every 17 children in areas outside of Chicago and one of every six children tested in Chicago had an elevated lead level. These statistics may underestimate the Illinois problem. Many children do not have their blood tested for lead, nor are they assessed for risk of poisoning. For example, although all children age 6 and under in Chicago are considered at high risk for lead poisoning, only one-third had a blood lead test in 2000. WHICH CHILDREN ARE AT HIGHEST RISK? • The risk of lead poisoning falls disproportionately on low-income children. The United States General Accounting Office estimated that one in 12 children on Medicaid had an elevated blood lead level. It also found that blood lead screening among children on Medicaid was low: 81 percent of Medicaid children had NOT received a blood lead test.1 • National data demonstrate that minori
