A state board created by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder in the wake of Flint’s water crisis outlined several policy recommendations on Thursday. They include:
— screening all children for lead by the time they turn 1 and again between ages 2 and 3.
— requiring that a lead inspection and risk assessment be done when any house built before 1978 is sold or transferred, unless lead in the home has already been fully addressed. If lead hazards were found, abatement would be required at the point of sale or transfer.
— testing the dust, soil and water in homes built since 1978. The owner would be required to disclose the information to a future buyer or renter.
— creating a centralized data reporting system so that local public health agencies, schools, doctors and insurers can track testing rates and cases, including whether follow-up care is being provided.
— considering routine prenatal blood-lead screening for pregnant women.
— inspecting high-risk rental housing until it is deemed to be lead-free.
— boosting Medicaid reimbursement rates for local health departments’ risk assessments and investigations.
— spending more to build criminal cases against property owners who do not remediate lead hazards.
— expanding soil testing programs and requiring sampling in high-risk areas before urban gardening efforts begin.
— requiring the disclosure of lead concentrations of 100 parts per million in consumer products, prohibiting lead in fishing tackle and wheel balancing weights, and creating an ammunition trade-in program.
