Hartzler co-sponsors bill to combat Lyme Disease

(From Fourth District Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler)

Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler (MO-04) announced today her co-sponsorship of H.R. 220, the National Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases Control and Accountability Act of 2019. If enacted, this bill would create a new national strategy for combating Lyme disease and other tick-borne disease and strengthen efforts across the federal government to fight, treat and prevent tick-borne disease.

“I have heard from many people in the community who have been affected by Lyme Disease,” Hartzler said. “We know so little about this illness, yet it affects so many. Patients are consistently misdiagnosed, or if they are correctly diagnosed, they don’t have many treatment options. We must make more progress in this area so the many individuals affected by Lyme disease can stop hurting and go on living.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 300,000 people are diagnosed with Lyme disease in the United States each year, which is 1.5 times the number of women diagnosed with breast cancer and six times the number of people diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Because Lyme disease is so often misdiagnosed, many experts believe the true number of cases is even higher.

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection that primarily transmitted by ticks, and it is found throughout the United States. It affects people of all ages, but the CDC states it is most commonly found in children, older adults, and people who spend a lot of time in the outdo