In recognition of Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, the MaineTracking Network has published new childhood lead poisoning and lead testing data for 2024. Blood lead testing rates have seen notable changes in the last 5 years, likely driven by the expansion of Maine’s testing requirements in 2019 to include all children at ages 1 and 2 years.
Blood lead testing is the only way to identify a child with elevated lead levels and prevent them from further exposure. In 2019, the Legislature expanded Maine’s requirements to test children for lead to include all children at ages 1 and 2 years, sometimes referred to as universal testing. Previously, Maine required children enrolled in MaineCare to be tested for lead at ages 1 and 2 years, and required all other children to be tested at these same ages unless their providers determined they were not at risk. Explore the data.
Blood Lead Testing Increases
After many years of no change, blood lead testing rates began to increase in 2019, and by 2024, 75% of one-year-old children and 60% of two-year-old children had received a lead test. These statewide increases in testing demonstrate a positive trend toward ensuring families, healthcare providers, and the Maine CDC are identifying lead-exposed children and taking steps to remove sources of lead exposure from their environments.
Differences in Blood Lead Testing Rates
In addition to looking at blood lead testing by age, the MaineTracking Network presents testing rates by MaineCare enrollment status. With these data, we see testing rates improved the most among children not enrolled in MaineCare. Children enrolled in MaineCare had only modest increases in blood lead testing.
