Colorado
The State of Colorado received $500,000 through cooperative agreement EH21-2102 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in FY 2022. The funds address childhood lead poisoning prevention and surveillance programmatic activities being conducted from September 30, 2022 to September 29, 2023.
The strategies focus on
- Ensuring blood lead testing and reporting
- Enhancing blood lead surveillance
- Improving linkages to recommended services
To learn more about these efforts in Colorado, contact the program below.
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
4300 E Cherry Creek South Dr.
Denver, CO 80246
Phone: 303-692-2000
Colorado Updates Blood Lead Level Screening Guidelines and Reporting Requirements
The Colorado Childhood Lead Program Prevention Program (CO CLPPP) sought to update lead screening recommendations to ensure providers were screening individuals at high risk for lead poisoning and reporting all blood lead test results to the state.
In 2018, CO CLPPP developed a workgroup composed of Colorado healthcare providers and public health professionals to update lead screening recommendations. CO CLPPP personnel researched the efficacy of various lead screening guidelines throughout the United States and determined the best methods to target at-risk populations. CO CLPPP recommended targeted testing based on a risk-based questionnaire. If the questionnaire indicates a high risk, children should receive blood lead testing at 12 months and 24 months of age. CO CLPPP prepared a proposal for the Colorado Board of Health to update the blood lead reporting level. For individuals up to 18 years of age, the timeframe for reporting blood lead levels (BLLs) ≥5 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL) is 7 days and the timeframe for reporting BLLs <5 µg/dL is 30 days.
CO CLPPP presented the proposal at the May 2018 meeting of the Board of Health and it was passed unanimously.
CO CLPPP published three documents on the updated lead screening guidelines which were disseminated to 3,051 recipients including all local public health agencies and provider associations in the state. They also conducted 31 educational outreach activities reaching 8,681 individuals. CO CLPPP was able to refer 363 children with elevated BLLs for appropriate services.
Funding for this work was made possible in part by NUE2EH001373 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The views expressed in this material do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the CDC; nor does mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.