Baltimore City Council Wants To Wipe Out Lead Paint Poisoning

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Wiping out lead paint poisoning across our state. Baltimore's city council is working to lead the way in this crusade.

Tracey Leong explains.

At one time, Baltimore had the highest rate of lead poisoning in children. While significant progress has been made to lower that number, the fight isn't over yet.

Once called the "silent epidemic," lead paint poisoning is a health concern overtaking Baltimore's children. The cases have dropped more than 86% since 2002, but Baltimore's city council is demanding more be done.

"Until it is totally wiped out in Baltimore City, we should not be satisfied," said Baltimore City Councilmember Mary Pat Clarke.

According to federal guidelines, in the past decade more than 26,000 children have shown an elevated blood lead level in Baltimore City. Councilmember Mary Pat Clarke is leading the charge to eradicate the problem.

"We need to put a priority on it and really beef it up," Clarke said.

The lack of funding and resources has been one of the biggest challenges in ending lead paint poisoning. There are less than a dozen inspectors who oversee more than 400,000 rental units in Maryland.

"Until we make the committment to have enough money to clean up the properties, that's a toxin that will continue to poison our children," said Ruth Ann Norton, Green & Healthy Homes Initiative.

Norton is a huge advocate for any efforts directed at ending this health crisis that targets Baltimore's children.

"The impacts are irreversible: reading disabilities, speech delays, hearing loss, aggressive and violent behavior," Norton said.

"If we go back and remove and clean up these dwelling units and apartments people are renting, kids can be free of it," Clarke said.

The city council will hold their first investigative hearing on February 4 to addresss this health epidemic. They plan to hear from state and city officials, as well as those affected.