EPA Tightens Lead Standard
The Environmental Protection Agency has dramatically strengthened the nation's air quality standards for lead, reducing the allowable lead level from 1.5 mcg of lead per cubic meter of air to 0.15 mcg. The decision is the first changed in 30 years, the EPA said. The agency said it strengthened the standards after a thorough review of the science on lead as well as advice from its Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee. By October 2011, the EPA will designate areas that must take additional steps to reduce lead air emissions, and states then will have 5 years to meet these new standards. AAP President David Tayloe applauded the move. “We were reminded again of the dangers of lead in toys and children's products over the past year, but children are exposed to lead through many sources, including the air we breathe,” Dr. Tayloe said. “We must move aggressively to reduce children's exposure to lead from all possible sources, and the EPA's action is a significant step in this battle.”
Maternal Health Resolution Passes
The United States must do more to reduce maternal mortality in this country and abroad, according to a resolution passed unanimously by the Senate. S. Res. 616, introduced by Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) and Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), noted that globally, 536,000 women die during pregnancy and childbirth each year. “While the majority of deaths occur in developing countries, the United States has one of the highest maternal mortality rates among industrialized nations,” Sen. Lincoln said in a statement. “A mother's health affects the health of her child, her family's well-being, and the productivity of a community.” The House approved a companion resolution (H. Res. 1022) earlier this year.