'Rare Acknowledgment of a High-Level Hush-Up'

Chinese authorities are now alleging an attempted cover-up in the lead poisoning of hundreds of Chinese kindergarteners, who were fed food decorated with powdered pigments containing more than 20% lead. Dozens of provincial health officials and staff at Tianshui No. 2 People's Hospital took part, tampering with the blood tests of students at Peixin Kindergarten in Tianshui city, investigators convened by the Gansu provincial Communist Party committee and government wrote in a Sunday report, per the New York Times and BBC. In one case, hospital officials allegedly reported a blood lead level nearly seven times lower than the actual result, per the Times.

City officials also accepted bribes from a Peixin investor while forgoing food safety inspections, or carrying out only cursory inspections, across multiple schools, including Peixin, according to the report, which stands as "a rare acknowledgment of a high-level hush-up of a public scandal" in China, per the Times. The report also accuses staff of obstructing the investigation "in various ways," without going into detail.

Six of eight people initially detained have been arrested, including the investor and Peixin's principal, who allegedly hoped the pigment would make the preschool's food look more appealing in an effort to boost enrollment. Another 17 people, including hospital leaders, are under investigation, the Times reports. All but one of the 235 students hospitalized had been released as of Sunday. City officials said all affected students would receive free medical treatment at designated hospitals, as well as legal assistance. The report came a day before China released new national guidelines for campus meals, highlighting that every new batch of food must now be tested.