New York City Housing Authority has been under heat for allegedly filing false paperwork on lead paint inspections. According to reports, the city claimed that only 19 kids living in public housing tested high for lead levels between 2012 and 2016, but that number was off by over 800!
The New York Daily News found that the city knew of 820 children, ages 6 and under, who had elevated blood-lead levels. They tested positive for lead levels of 5 to 9 micrograms per deciliter, which are numbers that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend for public health intervention.
“Mayor de Blasio has stated that ‘there has not been harm done to any child because of the mistakes that have been made,’ and consistently minimized the effect NYCHA’s well-documented failures to perform required lead paint inspections have had on the families who live in the authority’s aging apartments,” according to Daily News. “During the Bloomberg administration and continuing under de Blasio, the city chose to ignore the CDC recommendation and use a higher trigger of 10 micro-grams per deciliter before notifying NYCHA and inspecting apartments.”
Sources say that high lead levels are known to cause developmental delays in children.
