KEEPING OUR KIDS HEALTHY

Louise has always been an advocate for children’s health and knows that children are among the most vulnerable to environmental health hazards. In 2012, Louise called on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to adopt new standards for blood lead levels, which revealed that 535,000 US children under the age of six are poisoned by lead. Louise secured funding for lead poisoning prevention from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and CDC. Lead paint use has been linked to ADD, reproductive problems, behavioral problems, brain damage, and lead poisoning.

In 2013, Louise introduced a bill that would modernize HUD’s Lead Hazard Control Program and allow more families to receive lead abatement assistance.

Louise introduced the Children’s Health Task Force Act in 2012, which would permanently establish an inter-agency task force to address high-priority risks to children’s health, such as air pollution, hazardous chemicals, and lead exposure.