Occupational lead poisoning: can it be eliminated?

The continued occurrence of occupational lead poisoning and overexposure in the United States represents a serious challenge to the occupational health community. We outline a proposed action strategy which integrates case-based surveillance, hazard surveillance, increased requirements for biological monitoring, and targeted educational activities, with a goal of eliminating occupational lead poisoning. The system provides a simple mechanism for monitoring compliance in lead-using employers, in order to identify employers for enforcement action. Lead poisoning should be viewed as an eradicable condition; successfully solving the persistent lead overexposure problem can serve as a model for approaching other occupational diseases.