Associated Press - July 9, 2009 11:24 AM ET

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho (AP) - Panhandle Health District Program Manager Jerry Cobb says a stipend designed to encourage families in parts of northern Idaho to have children screened for lead poisoning has increased.

Families living east of Kellogg and west of Pinehurst are eligible for the $40-per-child stipend. Families who live in other parts of the Silver Valley can also get free blood-lead screening, but the district won't pay a stipend for those tests.

Soil in the region was contaminated with lead from years of mining pollution. Children's blood-lead levels have dropped dramatically since cleanup programs began in the mid-1980s, but the health district still recommends annual testing for children 6 and under.

Information from: The Spokesman-Review, http://www.spokesmanreview.com

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