INVESTIGATION
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CDC Soft-Pedaled Signs of DC Lead Poisoning
By Erika Solomon
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Posted Apr 10, 09 12:53 PM CDT
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(Newser)
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A CDC report withheld evidence linking water contamination to lead poisoning in Washington, DC, children, reports Salon. The 2004 study said city water caused only slightly increased blood lead levels, but thousands of blood tests were missing from the influential report, which may have skewed results. And just 3 years later, the CDC found many cases of children suffering from lead poisoning—detailed in a report that went unpublicized and wasn't shared with public health officials.
The lead writer of the 2004 report says the missing tests wouldn’t have affected results, but outside researchers maintain some of the most severely affected kids were excluded. And excluded government agencies like the EPA say something is amiss: "They never asked our help. That's a shame and a waste, because when it comes to lead in water, you need engineers, chemists, and health people to figure it out." A House subcommittee has begun an investigation.