1,000 Blood Test Results Returned In Lead Issue At Morristown Hospital

MORRISTOWN, N.J. – More than 1,000 blood lead level tests have been conducted by Morristown Medical Center since the facility learned its water tested high for lead, and the results have been announced.

All results received to date have been under 5 micrograms per deciliter, or mcg/dL, which is the Centers for Disease Control’s threshold for an acceptable blood lead level, Atlantic Health Systems Spokeswoman Elaine Andrecovich said.

A single adult blood lead level came in under 7 mcg/dL, which is over the threshold, but a risk assessment deemed the result was attributed to previous environmental exposure, Andrecovich said.

"About 2.5 percent of the U.S. population has a blood lead level over 5 mcg/dL, so we expected to see a few results over 5 mcg/dL," said Diane Calello, MD, Director of Toxicology at Morristown Medical Center. "The fact that we only have one person to date outside of this range is encouraging."

See related:

• Lead Was 73 Times Above Limit In Morristown Hospital Water, Tests Show
• Treatment 'Lapse' May Be Cause For Lead In Water At Morristown Medical Center
• Patients, Staff Exposed To Lead In Water For A Month At Morristown Medical Center
• Lead Found In Well Water At Morristown Medical Center

The hospital at 100 Madison Avenue learned it had high levels of lead in its water in late February and moved over to bottled water for food preparation and consumption. As of March 11, Andrecovich said, the facility continues the bottled water use and is working with the DEP on a plan to restore the use of water from the hospital’s private well.

The hospital announced lead may have been present in the water from Jan. 22 to Feb. 25, and as a result offered free blood tests to anyone – staff members to patients to visitors - who believed they may have consumed the tainted water.

Test results released earlier this week showed some samples with a lead level as high as 73 times the allowable threshold of 15 particles per billion, or ppb.

Water is still being used in the building for non-consumption purposes as lead is not absorbed by the skin, Andrecovich said.