"Millions of American Children Missing Early Lead Tests, Reuters Finds"

"Many states and Medicaid rules require blood lead tests for young children, but millions are falling through this safety net, leaving them vulnerable to poisoning – and showing lead worries extend beyond Flint, Michigan".

"LEETONIA, Ohio – When Jennifer Sekerak took son Joshua for his age-one check-up, the pediatrician saw no need to test for lead poisoning. The baby wasn’t yet walking, she recalls the doctor saying, so was unlikely to be playing around hazards like lead paint.

Over the next year or so, Joshua was twice hospitalized for mysterious symptoms. He began refusing food and eating dirt. There was violent head-banging, sleeplessness, skin lesions, vomiting.

“He stopped talking, he wanted to eat dirt, and he would scream like a banshee,” Sekerak said. “To be honest, he was like a wild animal.”"

Joshua Schneyer and M.B. Pell report for Reuters June 9, 2016.

SEE ALSO:

"In Some Zip Codes, 1 In 7 Children Suffer From Dangerously High Blood Lead Levels" (Washington Post)

"Physicians Group: Test For Lead In Schools, Day Care" (Detroit News)