Kristen Payne on lifelong benefits of reducing lead exposure
Lead Safe Schools MKE founder Kristen Payne, whose child attends a school where lead contamination required emergency remediation, considers burdens of exposure for kids and benefits of taking action.
By Nathan Denzin | Here & Now
April 16, 2025 • Southeast Region
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Kristen Payne:
So the estimates are for 2019, again, the lead exposure burden estimate was $1.4 billion in lifetime economic burdens for children who were born that year. Just that cohort, the 2019 cohort, $1.4 billion. We think about that every year we continue to not do what needs to be done — we're losing money. Talk about the financial aspect. We're losing money. It doesn't make financial sense to not get the lead out. I just think it's a lack of imagination, and it's also a lack of political will to do the right thing, the moral and ethical thing — not only that, but the cost savings thing. So all indicators are pointing to the direction that this is the right thing to do, no matter what you're concerned about. If you're concerned about budgets, it's the right thing to do. If you're concerned about the children, it's the right thing to do. If you're concerned about earning potential, it's the right thing to do. If you're concerned about crime, it's the right thing to do. Why? Lead exposure is actually linked to violent crime. If you're concerned about any issue our community is facing, getting the lead out is actually the right thing to do.
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