Because of contract disputes, cost and legislative hurdles, it will likely take years before the remainder of the city’s tens of thousands of lead pipes are replaced. In the meantime, experts say residents should take precautions like water filters.
Housing and Homeslessness
Portions of two Duluth neighborhoods have the highest rates of children with elevated blood lead levels of any census tract in the state, according to new Minnesota Department of Health data.
Soil tests found hazardous lead in about half of New Orleans playgrounds. Past cleanups were patchy, leaving many kids exposed and parents demanding action.
Rising housing costs in Massachusetts are forcing working families to sacrifice food, lose SNAP benefits, and face impossible tradeoffs, pushing many toward food pantries or leaving the state.
In Nevada, homelessness rarely alone leads to child removal, but rising housing instability increasingly delays reunification and compounds other risks, highlighting gaps in affordable housing and prevention resources.
Clark County’s family shelters, created from former motels, are keeping unhoused families together, diverting thousands of children from foster care and saving millions by addressing housing as prevention.
In Washoe County, families who accept county-paid motel rooms when shelter beds run out are automatically referred to child welfare. Critics say the policy can deepen fear and stigma — and highlights how scarce affordable housing pushes families closer to CPS.
Ohio public housing agencies fail to consistently test rental properties for radon, leaving vulnerable tenants unaware of exposure to the leading cause of lung cancer among nonsmokers.
A senior couple faces eviction from an affordable housing complex amid Sacramento County's failure to address 'renovictions' that advocates say intensify the affordable housing crisis.
Child welfare leaders declare victory when “kinship families” step up: Fewer children go into costly foster care and more kids stay with people they love. In truth, relatives say, child welfare agencies hand them the bill – and blame them when they can’t afford it.