More than 800 from Morristown Medical tested for lead

MORRISTOWN – More than 800 patients, employees and children have received blood tests to check for possible lead exposure at Morristown Medical Center over at least a month-long period.

“The people who have already been tested -- which consist of employees, children (including those from the day care center), current and former patients, visitors, volunteers and members of the public — were either those in a high risk group, or those concerned about their level of water consumption,” the hospital said.

Morristown Medical Center established a call center last week for to answer any questions concerned patients, guests or vendors may have about the water supply, lead exposure and testing. The number is 855-635-4657 and there also is an email address, morristown.questions@atlantichealth.org.

“Adult lead poisoning is generally only a result of exceedingly high long-term exposure, which is seen in occupational lead workers, for example,” Morristown Medical Center said. “While we have proactively communicated with our high-risk population, if you ingested water at Morristown Medical Center between Jan. 22 and Feb. 25, 2016 and are concerned, you can request a blood test.”

New mothers, patients notified about Morristown lead problem http://dailyre.co/1p1Vv9e

Any blood tests will be paid for by the hospital and no prescription is needed. The hospital strongly urges people connect with the call center, open between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., or email before taking a blood test. The hotline had received more than 130 calls as of Monday.

Outside of those hours, the NJ Poison Control Hotline is equipped to answer questions 24/7 at 1-800-222-1222.

Should elevated levels of lead be found in the blood, the most common form of treatment is to remove the source.

“Which was accomplished when the medical center moved to bottled water for food preparation and drinking on Feb. 25,” the hospital said. “For exceedingly high levels of toxicity, such as seen in industrial exposure, oral therapy is available.”

When asked if the hospital will provide and pay for those treatments, Morristown Medical Center said, “In the event there is a high level of lead, decisions regarding treatment will be made on a case-by-case basis in collaboration with the person’s local health department.”

The results of the tests are expected to be revealed by the end of the week.

“The CDC considers results under 5 (micrograms per deciliter) within an acceptable range,” the hospital said. “As we receive these results, we are notifying patients of their results directly.”

In the meantime, Morristown Medical Center is continuing to work with the state Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Health to restore the water supply. The hospital continued to use bottled water for food preparation and drinking as of Wednesday.

The results of the most recent water tests at the hospital are publicly available at http://www.atlantichealth.org/Files/Public/Documents/Public%20Education%20Letter.pdf.

UPDATE: Lead in water for a month at Morristown hospitalhttp://dailyre.co/1oYQdeR

The news of the findings at Morristown Medical Center comes in the wake of the Flint, Michigan, water crisis, which began in April 2014 and has affected thousands of children in the area who were exposed to lead in their drinking water.

Newark Public Schools Wednesday also temporarily shut off water fountains at all 30 school buildings due to elevated levels of lead.

The state’s largest school district found levels ranging from non-detect to above the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s action level for lead of 15 parts per billion on Monday and notified the agency immediately.

DEP said parents should have no concerns about their children's water and food consumption at school, adding drinking water alone is not typically associated with elevated blood lead levels. Alternate supplies of water have been brought in for drinking and food preparation.

DEP confirmed lead has not been found in the city's water supply.

The state mandates Morristown Medical Center test the water for lead on a “semi-annual” basis. The hospital said the last tests were done in September 2015, “with acceptable results.” DEP said traces of lead were seen as early as October.

Routine testing was done between Jan. 22 and Feb. 22, as were tests conducted by the state after Feb. 25, the hospital said.

RELATED: Lead found in water at Morristown Medical Centerhttp://dailyre.co/1oKGR5z 

Exposure to lead preceding the Jan. 22 date is possible, according to the hospital.

“Based on what we know at present, Jan. 22 was the last time we received acceptable water results, which we are making our baseline,” the hospital said. “As we continue to investigate this matter with the Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Health, that date may change.”

DEP has issued two Notice of Violations to Morristown Medical Center, the first on Feb. 19 for the interruption in operation of the corrosion control system and the second Wednesday as a result of information, including sampling results, obtained during the continuing investigation.

Copies of those documents do not list proposed penalties for the violations. DEP said penalties would be assessed after an investigation is complete.

Tests are conducted in 20 different locations throughout the hospital, and the latest tests identified levels of lead ranging from extremely low to those that exceed 15 parts per billion, a level which requires action according to federal regulations. As soon as they learned of the results, the hospital said it “immediately and aggressively acted,” shutting off the tap water and switching to bottled water on Feb. 25.

RELATED: EPA urges states to locate lead water lines as required http://dailyre.co/1TP04jr

Results of the most recent tests, taken Feb. 26, have shown a “strong decline” in the level of lead in the water, but ranged from non-detect to “well above” the EPA’s action level of 15 parts per billion (PPB). The samples went to two separate labs, DOH’s Public Health and Environmental Laboratories and Garden State Laboratories, a private certified laboratory facility.

The results from the DOH laboratory resulted in a 90th percentile value of 199 PPB with a highest result of 326 PPB and 29 of 39 distribution samples exceeding the action level of 15 PPB. Garden State Lab results also showed the 90th percentile for the 39 samples of 91 PPB.

The hospital gets its water from a well located on the property, which is only used by the hospital’s main 100 Madison Ave. campus, so no other Atlantic Health or Morristown locations are affected.  

Tests have confirmed the well water itself is not the source of the lead.

The hospital believes the cause to be a lapse in a water treatment called orthophosphate, a chemical that keeps lead from entering the water system when working.

The DEP said a licensed operator of the Morristown Medical Center water system first advised the agency of an issue with the corrosion control system on Feb. 17. That system is used to prevent lead that may be in pipes, solder or fixtures from leaching into the water.

It had been offline for an undetermined period of time at that point, DEP spokesperson Bob Considine said. The system now appears to be in working order, but officials are waiting until the system is flushed and an ensuing test can confirm the water is once again safe.

SEE ALSO: LETTER: Morristown Medical staff a blessing http://dailyre.co/1X2aRWk 

According to a fact sheet about lead in drinking water from the state Department of Health, too much lead in the human body can lead to damage to the nervous system, brain and kidneys. Young children and fetuses are at greatest risk to lead toxicity.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider a concerning level of blood in children younger than five years old to be 2.5 percent in the United States. A blood lead level greater than 5 microbrams per deciliter is a reportable amount, though there is no safe level of lead, according to the DOH fact sheet.

Lead can be removed from well water through point-of-use devices, and point-of-entry devices can reduce corrosivity. Water softeners and reverse osmosis units can also remove lead from water, according to the DOH.

For more information on lead and lead in drinking water, DEP directed people to two fact sheets available on the state website, http://www.nj.gov/health/ceohs/documents/dw_lead_factsheet.pdf and http://www.nj.gov/dep/watersupply/pdf/lead-water-faq.pdf.

Staff Writer Michael Izzo: 973-428-6636; mizzo@GannettNJ.com