CALIFORNIA SCREENING REGULATIONS

Standard of Care on Screening for Childhood Lead Poisoning

State regulations impose specific responsibilities on doctors, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants doing periodic health care assessments on children between the ages of 6 months and 6 years. This is a brief summary of health care provider's responsibilities. These regulations apply to all physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants, not just Medi-Cal or Child Health and Disability Prevention (CHDP) providers.

Anticipatory Guidance: At each periodic assessment from 6 months to 6 years.

• Screen (blood lead test)

• Assess: If child not in publicly supported program

• Ask: "Does your child live in, or spend a lot of time in, a place built before 1978 that has peeling or chipped paint or that has been recently remodeled?"
• Blood lead test: If the answer to the question is "yes" or "don't know."

• Other indications for blood lead test

• Suspected lead exposure
• Parental request
• Recent immigrant from country with high levels of environmental lead
• Change in circumstance has put child at risk of lead exposure

Follow-up: The Management Guidelines summarizes follow-up activities once a child is found to have an elevated blood level.

Why Assess and Screen?

• Low levels of lead exposure have lasting neurodevelopmental effects
• Since lead exposure at low levels that do harm may not cause symptoms, at-risk children may not be identified and therefore would not receive appropriate treatment or environmental investigation
• State requirement

If you have any comments or questions, please feel free to contact your local Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program or contact the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Branch directly at (510) 620-5600.

Read the entire code of regulations.