Many believe lead poisoning in young children is no longer a significant public health concern. But lead paint hazard removal continues to be a priority in Hennepin County, where the largest stock of homes with lead paint exist in the state.
The county is getting $3.4 million in grants, and the city of Minneapolis another $2.9 million, from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to make more homes lead-free.
"We are all working for the day when we don't use children as lead detectors," said Lisa Smestad, manager of lead hazard control and healthy homes for Minneapolis.
The numbers of sick children are down in Hennepin County. Since 2010, they dropped from 250 to 168, a decline of 33 percent. Statewide, the number of children testing positive for lead decreased from 672 in 2010 to 536 in 2015, a decline of 20 percent.
But hundreds of the most vulnerable kids in the state continue to suffer from unsafe lead levels in their system, despite decades of dollars thrown at prevention, outreach, testing and cleanup efforts.
"Lead poisoning is still a very serious and vital public health issue," said Rachelle Menanteau Peleska, director of education and outreach for Sustainable Resources Center in Minneapolis. "It's such a preventable issue."
Both Hennepin County and Minneapolis are starting to use a prevention and outreach model in the hope of protecting children before they are poisoned, said Mike Jensen, who supervises the county's lead reduction program.
County staffers do mailings to mothers with newborns in targeted censustracts, work with nonprofit organizations on door-to-door outreach, and attend health and housing fairs and other community events. If a family is eligible, the organizations work to get them signed up for the grant program.