3 days ago
Local childhood lead poisoning coalition left questioning funding amid federal cuts
ROCHESTER, N.Y (WROC) — In April, the staff at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) within the agency's 'Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program' were all fired as part of reductions in force.
Now, a local coalition which does community work to help prevent lead poisonings in children is left with uncertainty amid federal budget negotiations.
The 'Coalition to Prevent Lead Poisoning' is sounding the alarm after recently being revived thanks to support from a program in the CDC.
'The funding from the CDC for the coalition started in 2023 and then it was supposed to go to 2026 and now we have a big question mark,' Program Director Clare Robinson-Henrie said.
The Coalition first formed in 2000 and was a driving force, at the time, behind Rochester's groundbreaking 'lead law,' which passed in 2005 and was implemented in 2006, requiring all rental homes in Rochester to pass a lead test as part of the required Certificate of Occupancy (CofO) process.
'Really it had great success,' Robinson-Henrie said. 'In the city of Rochester, which had some of the highest lead poisoning rates previously went down really dramatically compared to the rest of the state so it really works well.'
In 2023, Causewave Community Partners, on behalf of CPLP, was awarded funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) three year opportunity: 'Supporting Communities to Reduce Lead Poisoning.'
The Coalition tells News 8 those funds dramatically increased the group's capacity to expand and implement programs. In the last year, CPLP has presented to more than 150 community members and provided thousands of lead poisoning prevention materials county-wide.
'For quite a few years there was no staff for the coalition and so we had great support from Causewave, which is our administrative and fiscal home, but no real staff to take it to the next level,' Robinson-Henrie said. 'So, then came along this wonderful opportunity from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which helped fund staff here, staff support, for the Coalition's work.'
Robinson-Henrie tells News 8, in the April 1 announcement of staff reductions at the CDC, the Coalition's program officer was fired.
The group does significant work in the community to educate folks about the dangers of lead poisoning; New York State requires children get tested for lead at ages one and two and if elevated levels are found, there can be serious health complications.
'They could be at risk for all sorts of cognitive and behavioral issues, speech and language issues,' Robinson-Henrie said. 'And unfortunately it's cumulative, lead poisoning is cumulative so if they keep getting exposed in their home and nothing changes, then they're just getting more and more of it and it settles into your bones eventually.'
'With kids, especially, they ingest it through their mouths. The lead dust that might be created from paint that is on like a door or a window, it has a lot of wear and tear so that creates invisible lead dust that is heavy, falls to the floor, falls on places where they're walking or crawling or on their toys, whatever else, and they ingest it because, as you said, they're putting a lot of stuff in their mouths,' she adds.
It's also not just the CDC with systems in place to work towards mitigating lead exposure: Robinson-Henrie also notes the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plays a crucial role to ensure the rules are followed; for example, a contractor doing abatement work inside homes with lead paint. All of these programs could be facing significant cuts as the budget process is currently underway in Washington.
'I know that we are only one of many different organizations to be impacted by the changes on the federal level. And ensure that your congress people are hearing from you, making sure that our U.S. senators, you know Congressman Morelle, know about these issues and that you want to make sure that childhood lead poisoning prevention is funded and can continue through the next 25 years,' Robinson-Henrie said.
'It's tragic because lead poisoning is almost entirely preventable and once a kid is lead poisoned it's really hard to reverse those effects; it's possible for them to thrive and have a full life for sure, I don't want to say that, but their opportunities may be narrowed,' Robinson-Henrie adds.
'To date, we have not seen any plans to reinstate the CDC's Childhood Lead Poisoning program. If these cuts are permanent, it will mean fewer resources to keep Monroe County children safe from lead exposure. The Secretary of Health and Human Services must put children's health first and reinstate the program immediately in order to ensure their vital work is not disrupted further.' Mel Callan, Chair of the Coalition to Prevent Lead Poisoning said.
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