Lead contamination has been recognized as a health hazard, particularly for young children. Here, in New York City, we have been aware of the dangers posed by lead paint in private apartment buildings as well as in public housing units (the Projects). According to an article in The New York Times, a new global study says that the extent of the problem of lead poisoning is far bigger than previously thought with one in three children worldwide, about 800 million in all, threatened by unacceptably high levels of lead in their blood.
What the Study Shows
Lead can be found in dust and fumes, chipping or peeling paint and old water pipes. It represents an 
enormous risk to the physical and mental development of children. This danger exists particularly in poor and middle-income countries where industrial pollution is not well regulated. The study, which is a collaboration of UNICEF and the nonprofit Pure Earth, also says that nearly a million adults die prematurely each year because of lead exposure.
The study’s authors said they based their analysis and conclusions on research compiled by the United Nations agencies including the World Health Organization (WHO) as well as by numerous universities and nonprofit groups. Their primary conclusion was that one-third of the world’s children, up to the age of 19, have blood lead levels at or exceeding 5 micrograms per deciliter of blood, a threshold for lead set by both the WHO and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Some children in the United States and many other developed nations have lead levels well below this threshold. But, in some areas in the United States, especially in low-income neighborhoods, children do have higher lead levels. In New York City, where infrastructure has been failing, children have been exposed to lead as a result of dilapidated lead water pipes and chipping/peeling lead paint in classrooms and apartments and houses, which have not been properly inspected.
Why Lead is Dangerous to Children
Lead has been known as a potent neurotoxin for hundreds of years. Benjamin Franklin wrote about the harm it may cause as early as 1786. But, we have learned about its serious health effects only in recent decades. Children, especially, are the worst affected when exposed to lead.
Lead exposure in children has been linked to reductions in IQ scores, to shortened attention spans, and potentially violent and criminal behavior. Fetuses and children 5 and under are at the greatest risk of permanent and irreversible neurological damage. Lead exposure also causes anemia, hypertension, renal impairment, and toxicity to the immune system and reproductive organs, etc. The neurological and behavioral effects of lead are believed to be irreversible.
Knowing Your Rights
If you have been living as a tenant at a private apartment complex or in a public housing unit (the Projects), please remember that you have legal rights. If your child has been diagnosed with high blood lead levels, regardless of whether you live in public or private housing, you may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit against the NYCHA (the Projects) or private landlords (building owners and managers, etc.) for damages.
Those who have been affected can seek compensation for damages including medical expenses, cost of diagnostic tests, permanent injuries, lost income and benefits, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. A knowledgeable New York City lead poisoning lawyer will be able to help you file the lawsuit and compile the evidence that is required to hold the agency or private building owner accountable for its negligence (carelessness).
NYC Lead Poisoning Lawyer
The experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help a victim affected by lead poisoning better understand his or her legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for them.
Our firm recovered $1,162,500 for a child who suffered lead poisoning from paint in her apartment. The child’s injuries were subtle and difficult to recognize. We recovered $162,500 above the $1 million dollar total insurance policy in this case. Despite the judge’s efforts to settle the case for $950,000, we fought hard and recovered $162,500 more than the insurance policy of one million dollars. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury and medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
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Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/29/world/americas/lead-poisoning-children.html