Maine Healthy Housing Fact Sheet
The Need in Maine:
One-third of children in Maine live in households with high housing cost burden, and one in five children in Maine live in poverty.[i] The potential effect of high housing cost burden and poverty on children and families is exacerbated by the age of Maine’s housing stock. Thirty-two percent of Maine’s homes were built in 1939 or earlier and are likely to contain lead-based paint.[ii] These factors make Maine a high housing hazard state. Unhealthy housing conditions can lead to lead poisoning, injuries, and asthma and other respiratory problems. These health problems in turn result in missed school days and poor school performance, and missed work days for parents.
Funding for Healthy Housing in Maine:
· Maine has received a total of $25,226,202[iii] in funding for 13 grants from HUD’s Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control since the inception of the grants program in 1999.
· In fiscal year 2011, the Maine State Housing Authority was the only grantee in the state to receive funding from HUD Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control Program. No grantees were funded in 2012.
Indoor Air Quality:
· Based on data from the 2004 American Community Survey, Maine has the highest percentage of occupied housing units in the U.S. with fuel oil, kerosene, et cetera as the principal heating fuels in the U.S. (80.3 percent).[iv]
Childhood Lead Poisoning[v]:
· Lead poisoning is Maine’s number-one environmental health hazard to children in terms of known risk, prevalence, and consequences.
· Lewiston-Auburn, Biddeford-Saco, Portland-Westbrook, and Bangor are high-risk areas for childhood lead poisoning.
Asthma:
· Overall, Maine has a high burden of asthma relative to the nation[vi] and some of the highest rates of asthma in the country.[vii],[viii]
o Approximately 10 percent of Maine adults currently have asthma, compared to 7.8 percent nationally.
o Of Maine children, 10.7 percent have asthma, compared to 8.9 percent nationally.
· Between 2000 and 2005, the proportion of asthma emergency department visits that had MaineCare (Medicaid) listed as the expected payer increased by roughly 40 percent.[ix]
Moisture Control:
· The Maine State Housing Authority reported that dirt floors, lack of bathroom and kitchen vents, and lack of dryer vents are the most commonly cited moisture issues in the Maine Weatherization units. A second tier of frequently cited moisture problems include roof leaks, water staining, and failed sump pumps. At least one moisture issue was observed in 75 percent of all households.[x]
**Source information included below
Radon:
· High levels of radon gas occur naturally in Maine soil and water and can rise into a house from the ground.[xi]
· An estimated one in three Maine homes has air radon concentrations higher than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s action level. In some areas, such as the Sebago Lake area, as many as two-thirds of homes tested have high levels. In addition, an estimated one-sixth of Maine wells have radon concentrations higher than the allowable amount.[xii]
If full funding is not made available for the Office of Healthy Housing and Lead Control program at HUD in FY 2013 and beyond, the health of the citizens of Maine will continue to be at risk and the associated health care costs will continue to increase. Allocating $25 million in funding for HUD’s healthy homes program out of the $120 million total for that office will enable the State of Maine to address the healthy housing issues described above.
[i] http://datacenter.kidscount.org/DataBook/2012/OnlineBooks/ForMedia/StateProfiles/2012KCstateprofileME.pdf
[ii] Percent of Housing Units that Were Built in 1939 or Earlier by State, American Community Survey 2004. Retrieved from http://www.StateMaster.com/graph/hou_per_of_hou_uni_tha_wer_bui_in_193_or_ear-units-were-built-1939-earlier.
[iii] U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control, Grants provided to the State of Kentucky, Personal communication, May 6, 2013.
[iv] Percent of Occupied Housing Units With Fuel Oil, Kerosene, Etc. as Principal Heating Fuel by state, American Community Survey 2004. Retrieved from http://www.StateMaster.com/graph/hou_per_of_occ_hou_uni_wit_fue_oil_ker_etc_as_pri_hea_fue-oil-kerosene-etc-principal-heating.
[v] Maine Department of Health and Human Services. Healthy Maine 2010. http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/healthy-maine/documents/hm2010/a06ch03.pdf
[vi] The Burden of Asthma in Maine 2008. Maine Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/population-health/mat/documents/2008-asthma-burden-report.pdf
[vii] Maine Indoor Air Quality Council. http://www.maineindoorair.org/asthma-triggers-a-their-control#Why percent20Does percent20Maine percent20Have percent20Such percent20High percent20Rates
[viii] Maine Environmental Health Public Health Tracking Network. https://data.mainepublichealth.gov/tracking/.
[ix] The Burden of Asthma in Maine 2008. Maine Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/population-health/mat/documents/2008-asthma-burden-report.pdf
[x] Asthma and Weatherization in Maine. National Center for Healthy Housing and ERT Associates. 2006. http://www.nchh.org/Portals/0/Contents/Asthma_and_Weatherization_in_Maine.pdf.
[xi] Maine Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Environmental Health. Radon in Maine Tipsheet #1. http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/environmental-health/rad/radon/documents/2011 percent20tipsheet percent201.pdf.
[xii] Maine Department of Health and Human Services. Healthy Maine 2010. http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/healthy-maine/documents/hm2010/a06ch03.pdf