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More than one-third of Medicaid-enrolled children in five states did not receive required blood lead screening tests
More than one-third of Medicaid-enrolled children in five states did not receive required blood lead screening tests
- Collection:
- Health Policy and Services Research
- Series Title(s):
- Report in brief (United States. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of Inspector General)
- Contributor(s):
- United States. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of Inspector General. Office of Evaluation and Inspections, issuing body.
- Publication:
- Washington, D.C. : U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, October 2021
- Language(s):
- English
- Format:
- Text
- Subject(s):
- Child Health
Government Regulation
Lead Poisoning -- diagnosis
Medicaid
Vulnerable Populations
United States
United States. Department of Health and Human Services - Genre(s):
- Technical Report
- Abstract:
- Why OIG Did This Review. There is no safe level of lead exposure; even low-level blood lead concentrations during childhood have been associated with behavioral and physical impairments. Children exposed to lead may suffer stunted cognitive development and delayed reproductive development. In the longer term, elevated blood lead levels have been linked to increased incidence of hypertension and coronary heart disease as well as higher rates of violent crime and arrests in adulthood. Prevention is key to avoiding the permanent developmental effects of lead exposure on children. Scheduled blood lead screening tests can support early detection of elevated blood lead levels, timely followup, and improved outcomes for children. We selected five States for which we reviewed Medicaid claims data and supplemental health department data for fiscal years (FYs) 2015–18. We examined the extent to which Medicaid-enrolled children received required blood lead screening tests. We also interviewed stakeholders and surveyed practitioners to identify challenges in providing blood lead screening tests, followup services, and treatment for Medicaid-enrolled children. How OIG Did This Review. We selected five States for which we reviewed Medicaid claims data and supplemental health department data for fiscal years (FYs) 2015–18. We examined the extent to which Medicaid-enrolled children received required blood lead screening tests. We also interviewed stakeholders and surveyed practitioners to identify challenges in providing blood lead screening tests, followup services, and treatment for Medicaid-enrolled children.
- Copyright:
- The National Library of Medicine believes this item to be in the public domain. (More information)
- Extent:
- 1 online resource (1 PDF file (31 pages))
- Illustrations:
- Illustrations
- NLM Unique ID:
- 9918383978906676 (See catalog record)
- Permanent Link:
- http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/9918383978906676