Definition: Percentage of children and youth ages 0-20 with blood lead levels (a) below 4.5 micrograms per deciliter (mcg/dL), (b) between 4.5 and 9.49 mcg/dL, and (c) at least 9.5 mcg/dL, among those screened, by age group (e.g., among California children ages 0-5 screened for lead poisoning in 2020, 1% had blood lead levels between 4.5 and 9.49 mcg/dL).
Data Source: California Dept. of Public Health, Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Branch, California Blood Lead Data & California's Progress in Preventing and Managing Childhood Lead Exposure (Apr. 2022).
Footnote: For children and youth with more than one test in a year, only the test with the highest blood lead level result, and the county of residence at the time of this test, are reported. The 'less than 4.5 mcg/dL' category includes results reported by the analyzing laboratory as <5 mcg/dL. Data exclude results determined to be false positives or clerical errors. Federal and state regulations require that every child in a government-funded health program be given a lead screening at 12 months and again at age 2. When a screening is missed, health care providers are required to screen at the first opportunity up to age 6. Due to disruptions in testing related to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 (for more information, visit the California Dept. of Public Health) and low screening rates in 2019 and earlier years (visit the California Dept. of Health Care Services and California State Auditor), data presented here should be treated with caution. The notation S refers to data that have been suppressed by the data source. N/A means that data are not available.
