City Councilmember Ritchie Torres announced Friday that he is teaming up with Med-Alliance to introduce a prevention plan to ensure Bronx residents avoid lead poisoning and receive help if needed.

Torres says that he wants the Department of Health to lower the threshold for what is considered elevated lead levels to match the CDC's definition. He also wants to provide families with free lead screenings from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. every Tuesday at his office at 573 East Fordham Road. 

Torres says that the Department of Health should reach out to families who haven't been tested for lead, and that high lead levels in blood can be detrimental to a child's growth and can even be deadly.

According to the councilmember’s office, even though the Bronx has a lower population than Manhattan, it has three times the number of children with lead poisoning.