Columbus leaders and health officials announced a new initiative Wednesday aimed at preventing lead exposure to children in neighborhoods that were red-lined decades ago. It's called Healthy Children and Safe Homes by 2040.
"This initiative is about health,” says Dr. Mysheika Roberts, Health Commissioner with Columbus Public Health. “This initiative is about equity. Lead exposure disproportionately impacts children of color who are living in previous red-line neighborhoods where houses are older than 1978 when the federal government banned the use of lead paint."
Redlining is a discriminatory practice in which banks denied loans or insurance to potential customers who lived in neighborhoods classified as "hazardous" to investment. These neighborhoods have significant numbers of racial and ethnic minorities, and low-income residents.
Dr. Roberts says the initiative will create a $44 million repair fund to remove lead from high risk, high friction surfaces like doors and windows. Those are often the sources of lead exposure in the homes of young kids. The focus at first will be on the Near East, including the Livingston Avenue Corridor, Greater Linden, and the South Side.
“These houses might look beautiful on the outside, but on the inside, they are slowly poisoning our children in the comfort of their own homes,” says Roberts.
Dr. Roberts says, on average, about 141 children each year in Columbus receive diagnosis of an elevated blood level. She says only about 50% of children in question get tested.
Funds already raised include $7 million from federal and state contributions. The Columbus Housing Authority has also contributed $10,000.
"We're not backing down,” says Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther. “We're not stepping away. We're doubling down and we're going all in. And as long as I'm the mayor of the city, equity and dealing with racism as a public health crisis will be a top priority."
