Hubbardston board to follow up on reported local lead case, plans outreach

The Town of Hubbardston Board of Health agreed to follow up after an MPHN email reporting a local resident with an elevated lead concern.

Unidentified Speaker 1 said the board received the information through MPHN and asked whether the board or MPHN should lead follow-up. Unidentified Speaker 2 said he and Unidentified Speaker 3 could contact the family and that the phone interviews MPHN used were similar to the board’s Maven reporting.

The board discussed the practical challenges of establishing a local lead-screening program. Unidentified Speaker 2 said sustaining a screening program requires steady funding and staff to ensure children are tested at recommended intervals — “these little ones need to be tested 3 times before they get into school,” he said — and cited difficulties getting follow-up at ages 2 and 3 after an initial one‑year screen.

As an immediate, low‑cost action the board agreed to prepare a short informational blurb about lead symptoms and the testing schedule for the town website and to forward that blurb to the school district nursing office for possible distribution. Unidentified Speaker 1 said the blurb should include that the board took action after an actual local case to make it clear this is not hypothetical.

Action items: Unidentified Speaker 2 and Unidentified Speaker 3 will follow up with MPHN and the resident, and the board will draft the public‑information blurb for publication and school distribution.

The board did not adopt a new testing program at this meeting, citing funding and staffing barriers; members said they will seek further input before proposing a local screening initiative.